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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24756166">ghoul babe</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/rattiewrites/pseuds/rattiewrites'>rattiewrites</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Tokyo Ghoul</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Aogiri no Ki | Aogiri Tree (Tokyo Ghoul), Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Ghoul OC - Freeform, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Slow Burn, blatant sexual content, i don’t know how to use tags, yes akira is gay</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 05:55:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>26,156</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24756166</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/rattiewrites/pseuds/rattiewrites</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Koutarou Amon was not the type of person to enjoy or even participate in one night stands. He preferred built-upon relationships with sentimental value.<br/>For these reasons he was quite confused when he awoke in a darkened room that he wasn’t familiar with, next to a man he didn’t know. Later, when he meets the same man at work, he realizes life is about to get much more complicated.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Amon Koutarou/Original Male Character(s), Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise/Kirishima Touka</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Beginning</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>hi! this is my first time writing through ao3 so please bear with me! any critiques or comments are welcome! please note that this is a wip, and i will do my very best to update asap. THERE WILL BE SPOLIERS IN THIS AS IT FOLLOWS THE MAIN STORYLINE!1</p><p>also- I'm reading the manga after finishing the anime, and I will probably be going with the root a plot of kaneki joining aogiri (forgive me)</p>
    </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>update as of 7/28/20! </p><p>i'm working on slowly reformatting the work, and combining chapters that are too short to be on their own. </p><p>from now on, i will be implementing a divider between pov's and time skips within the chapter. unfortunately, this means i will be deleting chapters and with that, comments. if your comment was deleted because of this update, i apologize! </p><p>thank you for all your support!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Koutarou Amon was not the type of person to enjoy or even participate in one night stands. He preferred built-upon relationships with sentimental value. </p><p>For these reasons he was quite confused when he awoke in a darkened room that he wasn’t familiar with, next to a man he didn’t know. The man’s back was facing him, his skin pale and scarred. </p><p> </p><p>Amon winced, a splitting headache descending upon him. Was he hungover? </p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t remember the night before. He had a very vague memory of going out on his own to track and gather information on a new ghoul in the area, Vulture. The ghoul had a terrifying penchant for cannibalism and torture. No human victims had been linked to him, as he often found ghouls who had made a kill, ate them, and then the human. </p><p> </p><p>The person next to him shifted, and Amon became acutely aware that he was dressed only in his underwear. Dark purple marks snaked down his chest and neck, and he dreaded to know what had happened. The man turned to face him, and Amon was struck by his beauty. Handsome was not the right word to describe him, he was simply beautiful. </p><p> </p><p>He had short dark hair, tousled from sleep (or other nightly activities Amon didn’t want to consider.) A scar ran from the tail end of his left eyebrow down to his collarbone. It was clearly an old wound, but Amon wondered how painful it must have been. </p><p> </p><p>The man smirked, observing Amon with half-closed green eyes. He pushed himself up on his elbow, resting his head on his hand, looking down at Amon. Amon had the most peculiar urge to push the man’s bangs out of his face and run his fingers down the mysterious scar. </p><p> </p><p>Amon cleared his throat, brushing the thought aside. His voice was hoarse, but he managed to speak. </p><p> </p><p>“Who are you?” </p><p> </p><p>The man’s smirk widened, turning into a smile. </p><p> </p><p>“You mean you don’t remember? How disappointing, we had quite the time together.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon flushed. His assumptions had been correct. </p><p> </p><p>“I- I’m sorry, I just don’t remember last night. Did we really-?” </p><p> </p><p>His voice trailed off, too embarrassed to ask. </p><p>“Did we fuck? No. You were quite eager to, but I could smell the beer on you from a mile away. It would not have been fair to you.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon blinked. </p><p> </p><p>“So we didn’t- at all?” </p><p> </p><p>“Well,” The man responded “You were quite insistent. We had a good time, but no fucking was involved.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon resisted the urge to look at the bruises and hickeys on his body. Studying the man as discreetly as possible, he noticed he showed no signs of their time together. Amon breathed out a sigh of relief. </p><p> </p><p>“God, I don’t even know your name.” </p><p> </p><p>“It’s Ichiro. And yours might be?” </p><p> </p><p>“Amon.” </p><p> </p><p>The man- Ichiro nodded. </p><p> </p><p>“I should get out of here,” Amon announced, sitting up and looking around the room for the rest of his clothing. The man lazily pointed to a pile on the floor, a large metal suitcase next to it. Amon’s heart sank. He had been so irresponsible, he left his most important weapon in the room of a human he didn’t know, while black-out drunk. </p><p> </p><p>“Sure you don’t want to stay?” Ichiro asked innocently. Amon ignored him, buttoning his pants and tugging his shirt over his head. As he walked towards the door of the bedroom, he heard Ichiro call out to him. </p><p>“Goodbye.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon shivered and closed the door behind him. He left the man’s house, confused and in need of some coffee. </p><p> </p><p>---------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro watched him go, a little disappointed. While he would have certainly enjoyed spending more time with Amon, he had to remind himself of that horrible metal suitcase and who had died to give Amon power.</p><p> </p><p>That suitcase had contributed to the investigator’s successful defeat of so many ghouls, innocent or otherwise. Ichiro sighed. He wasn’t one to debate the ethics and morality of ghouls. Hell, he was a cannibal, the worst of the worst.</p><p> </p><p>He was known as Vulture. He tracked down ghouls killing innocents, ate the ghoul, and then the human. What really has given him infamy was when he tortured the ghouls killing innocents.</p><p> </p><p>He remembered when he had lost control when he saw a ghoul, eyes red and pants below the ankles, standing over a teenage girl. The girl was dead when Ichiro arrived. That ghoul had suffered for hours before Ichiro had finished him off. He didn’t eat the girl, too disgusted at what had happened.</p><p> </p><p>Dismissing thoughts of the carnage and gore, Ichiro stood, stretched, and got dressed for work. He was a criminal psychologist who specialized in ghouls. He got into their heads, thinking as they would.</p><p>Then a team of CCG investigators would be dispatched, the ghoul hunted down and killed. Ichiro made a point to avoid working on the ghouls he knew were not violent, focusing on those who harmed the innocent.</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro left his apartment (conveniently located near Anteiku) and took a taxi to the CCG headquarters. He sat down in his cubicle and waved to Juuzou. Ichiro had befriended the young investigator when Juuzou was first promoted and began to work in the same area as Ichiro. Often the younger boy unnerved Ichiro but what Juuzou just needed was a friend.</p><p> </p><p>On occasion, Ichiro needed Juuzou’s input on what the best strategy the CCG should use to take down a certain ghoul. If Juuzou seemed too stressed by the workload assigned, Ichiro would take some of his cases on. It helped him ignore the ghouls he knew were innocent or justified in their actions that the CCG still wanted to hunt down.</p><p> </p><p>The door of the analysis office slammed, opening, and closing. Office workers glanced up, then quickly went back to their work. Ichiro was too focused on his analysis to look up and jumped when the Director tapped him on the shoulder.</p><p> </p><p>“Sir?”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m glad to see that you are working so hard, Ichiro. I have a special assignment for you. You and Special Class Investigator Amon will be working together to track down the ghoul known as Vulture.”</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro almost choked, trying to contain his surprise and amusement. He didn’t work with Special Class investigators often, and he’d thought Amon had been assigned to another ward. It was risky, he knew Amon was smart. It would draw more suspicion to deny the case, and even if he did, he doubted the Director would accept his response.</p><p>“Of course sir. I will do my absolute best.”</p><p> </p><p>The director nodded.</p><p> </p><p>“Come with me. I believe you two haven’t met, so introductions are necessary.”</p><p> </p><p>---------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p>Amon grunted as he slammed Dojima down on the target dummy. The club-like quinque smashed the dummy to bits and pieces, cloth billowing as the stuffing was pushed out of the dummy. </p><p> </p><p>Sweat soaked through his white tank-top. He had been practicing with the quinque since he got to work. His arms were sore and his shoulders ached, but he needed to be better with his weapon. He struck again, performing a combo attack. He overestimated the swing and was pulled forward by the weight of Dojima. The quinque collided with the metal wall, and the resulting clang reverberated through the empty room. </p><p> </p><p>The door opened, and Amon turned. He worried that a higher-up had come to tell him to keep it down. His quinque was not useful in stealth or any quiet activity, meaning he would have to stop training. </p><p> </p><p>A wave of relief hit him as he saw the director enter the room, quickly followed with fear. Was he in trouble? He swallowed nervously. Then Amon saw the man standing behind the director, completely recognizable. Ichiro smirked, watching him with eyes half-closed, just as he did when Amon awoke next to him. </p><p> </p><p>Amon’s throat felt dry. His mind whirled in confusion. Maybe Ichiro had reported him for being so careless with his quinque and he was about to be fired? Amon dreaded the thought. The job was the only thing keeping him sane and he had been slipping further and further off the edge of his sanity, especially after Mado’s death. Amon shooed away the thought. He cleared his throat. </p><p> </p><p>“Is there a problem sir?” The director smiled kindly at him. </p><p> </p><p>“None at all, Special Class Investigator Amon. I simply have a new assignment for you. This is of the utmost importance, so I trust you will succeed?” </p><p> </p><p>“Yes sir! What is my mission?” Amon glanced nervously at Ichiro. Why was he here? </p><p> </p><p>“You and Special Class Ghoul Analyst Ichiro are tasked with finding and taking the ghoul Vulture into custody. We have reason to believe that he is part of a larger group of ghouls. It is crucial we find him and extract what information we can. He also may be connected to Rabbit.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon’s grip on Dojima tightened. He hated Rabbit more than anything in the world. Mado had died two weeks ago, and before him, one of Amon’s friends had been killed. </p><p> </p><p>“Of course Sir. Thank you for this opportunity.” </p><p> </p><p>The director nodded and left the room, leaving the two men alone. </p><p> </p><p>“What a lovely coincidence to see you here, Amon,” Ichiro said, batting his eyelids. Amon rolled his eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“How the hell have I never seen you here before?” He asked. </p><p> </p><p>“I work up in the offices. I don’t often leave to exterminate a ghoul, I mostly analyze and advise investigators on how to take down powerful ghouls. So, it’s no surprise you haven’t seen me, I’ve been busy with many cases.” </p><p> </p><p>“So you’d be useless in a fight?” </p><p> </p><p>“I wouldn’t say that,” Ichiro said, tilting his head slightly to the side. “I can be quite useful when needed.”</p><p> </p><p>Amon shivered. Memories of the night before were slowly coming back to him. Amon had been at a nightclub (investigating a sighting of Vulture) and had become transfixed with the other man when he saw Ichiro dancing. Ichiro had noticed him staring and had pulled him in to dance with him. They had stumbled back to Ichiro’s apartment, high off of the energy from the club. Amon pushed the memories away, trying to focus on his current situation.</p><p> </p><p>“What is our plan of action?”</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro tossed him a thick file folder. </p><p> </p><p>“Here’s my baseline analysis. I’ll be working on it more, but an important thing to consider will be that Vulture will likely have a Kakuja kagune.” </p><p> </p><p>“Great,” Amon muttered. “Another cannibal.”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m sure this will be quite entertaining,” Ichiro said. “We’ll have so much fun together.” </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>edit made 7/28/20- combined chapters one, two and three.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Quite the Encounter</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>there's a timeskip of a few months from the last chapter to this one! enjoy :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Amon’s back slammed against the wall, and he heard something crack. The alleyway was dimly lit and the smell of blood wafted up and around the brick walls. Where the hell was Ichiro? </p><p> </p><p>They had been looking for Vulture all night and had split up to cover more ground. The plan was to find ghouls feeding on humans, then hide and wait to see if Vulture showed up. They were in the 19th ward, where Vulture had last struck. </p><p> </p><p>Amon feared their search would be for nothing, but when he heard the scream of a terrified person, he ran as fast as he could in that direction. He’d found a ghoul feeding on a human and was now locked in combat, trying to fight said ghoul. He was not winning. </p><p> </p><p>He shakily stood, blocking the ghoul’s next attack with Dojima. The ghoul was a young woman, small and frail-looking. She attacked viciously with her tentacle-like kagune (a Rinkaku type) and her shoulder-length blue hair clashed with her black and red eyes. She swiped at him, and Amon dodged. His ribs flared with pain. </p><p> </p><p>A thump behind her caused them both to pause. Almost instantaneously,  the enemy ghoul was beheaded. A pitch-black Kakuja kagune in the form of a large wing sliced through the blue-haired girl’s neck, revealing the ghoul behind her. Amon stared in awe. </p><p> </p><p>Vulture really had embraced his nickname. His kagune were shaped like large bird’s wings with razor-sharp feather tips. He wore a bird head’s mask, pink and skin-textured, with a black beak hiding the man’s nose. Eye-holes were cut in the mask, and the ghoul’s mouth was covered with a face mask, separate from the bird mask.</p><p> </p><p> Vulture’s eyes glowed red, cool, and calculating. Amon swallowed and tightened his grip on the handle of Dojima, raising the quinque in front of his body.  </p><p> </p><p>Vulture tilted his head, seemingly analyzing Amon’s every movement. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re going to fight?” Vulture mused. His voice was distorted by the face mask he wore. </p><p> </p><p>“Why wouldn’t I? You’re a filthy ghoul.” Amon answered. </p><p> </p><p>“You really think that way?” The man seemed almost disappointed. “I don’t want to fight a dove. I don’t need trouble with your kind. What would your fellow investigators say if they knew a ghoul saved you?”</p><p> </p><p>“They won’t know,” Amon growled. “You won’t live past tonight.”</p><p> </p><p>Vulture was so fast Amon had trouble comprehending what had happened. He was again slammed against the alley wall. However, he was saved from further injury by Vulture’s kagune, the wings wrapping around him, and cushioning his impact. </p><p> </p><p>This action pulled the two men together. Vulture was so close to Amon that he could feel the man’s breath through his mask against his face. Their bodies pressed against each other and heat rose to Amon’s face. Why was he blushing? </p><p> </p><p>He was about to be killed by a ghoul and all he could think about was how well their bodies fit together. He squirmed against the other man, but all he accomplished was rubbing himself against Vulture. Amon could feel himself getting hard and he immediately went still. Vulture chuckled, loosening his grip on Amon, but not letting go. Amon immediately missed the warmth and sensation over the ghoul’s body against his own. </p><p> </p><p>“Let me go...:” Amon tried to sound calm and grounded, but his voice hitched and trembled when </p><p>Vulture leaned in closer. Amon took a moment to consider what he was about to do and convinced himself it was to learn more about the ghoul. With a trembling hand, Amon pulled down Vulture’s face mask. Vulture made an “oh” of surprise, but all Amon focused on was the other man’s lips. Amon pulled the other man against him, and kissed him. It was not a gentle kiss, it was hard and passionate, needy even. Vulture pushed his tongue, gently, against the other man’s lips, and Amon moaned, letting him in. </p><p> </p><p>They ended up on the alley ground, Vulture still on top of Amon. The beak of Vulture’s mask was conveniently short enough that it only occasionally poked Amon’s face. They stopped kissing to take a breath of air, both of their chests heaving. Amon’s pants were now uncomfortably tight. </p><p> </p><p>Vulture tasted familiar to Amon as if they had kissed before. Vulture leaned down again and gently nibbled Amon’s bottom lip. Amon’s back arched with pleasure. Then he froze. What the actual fuck was he doing? </p><p> </p><p>Here he was, under a ghoul he was supposed to kill, and he was about to be eaten. <em> Vulture doesn’t kill humans </em>a small part of his brain said. He pushed that thought to the back of his mind. He turned his face to the side, letting Vulture nibble down his neck. He spotted Dojima on the ground right where he’d dropped it when Vulture had pushed him against the wall. </p><p> </p><p>Vulture, being distracted, didn’t notice Amon inching towards his quinque. Suddenly, Amon twisted his hips and rolled to the side, now on top of Vulture and within reach of his weapon. Vulture’s expression morphed into surprise, then he smirked. He quickly changed his expression when Amon grabbed Dojima and raised it over the ghoul’s head, ready to crack the other man’s skull open. The ghoul almost looked hurt, but he growled, pulled his face mask up, and pushed Amon off of him. </p><p> </p><p>“You Doves are all the fucking same. I can’t believe I thought you were fucking different. It’s all a damn ploy to kill us in the end, huh?” </p><p> </p><p>Vulture jumped into the air and flapped his wing-shaped kagune. He made it to a rooftop and ran, occasionally using his wings for extra speed. Amon’s ears rang, and he could hear his heart beating.</p><p> </p><p> A wave of nausea filled him, and he vomited. Still on the ground, he put his head in his hands, rocking back and forth. His adrenaline faded, and he suddenly could feel his broken ribs again. Amon’s head swirled, and his whole world tilted. The last thing he saw was the head of the dead ghoul, eyes human and staring directly into his soul. </p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>Amon awoke yet again in what he recognized as Ichiro’s bedroom. This time there was no warm body next to him, and he was much sorer. </p><p> </p><p>He groaned, sitting up, noticing the dried blood staining his hands and clothes. The door opened, and Ichiro entered. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh. You’re awake.” </p><p> </p><p>The usual humor and flirtatious tone of Ichiro’s voice were gone, just flat and empty. Amon searched the other man’s face for any sign of emotion and noticed the scar curving down his face for the second time. The other man’s eyes were red-rimmed as if he had been crying. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro sat down the cup of coffee he was carrying on the nightstand next to Amon. </p><p> </p><p>“How are you feeling?” Ichiro asked as Amon took a sip of the dark liquid. It was surprisingly good. Amon cleared his throat and answered. </p><p> </p><p>“A bit sore, but I’ll survive. How- how did I get here?”</p><p> </p><p>“I went looking for you after I completed my search for Vulture. The red light district was quite entertaining, but no one had seen him. I had to track your phone to find you, you weren’t answering when I called you. You were passed out in a pool of ghoul blood.”</p><p> </p><p>Amon felt his face getting hot at the mention of Vulture. Had last night really happened? His memories were hazy with lust and regret. Amon must have been going crazy. What the hell had he been thinking, making out with a ghoul? </p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t stop thinking about how gently Vulture had held him, even cradled him with his kagune so his ribs wouldn’t hurt. Had the ghoul even been trying to eat him? If Vulture had been trying to harm him, he had many opportunities before they were on the ground. Amon considered this. If Vulture had been a human, the act would be considered normal. <em> But he’s not human. </em> Amon reminded himself. </p><p> </p><p>He blinked, pushing the thoughts from his mind. He looked up at Ichiro again. The man was acting odd, not meeting Amon’s eyes. </p><p> </p><p>“Ichiro?”</p><p> </p><p>“Yes?” Ichiro quickly looked at Amon, as if he was lost in thought. “Oh. Your suitcase is here.” He gestured absently towards the door. </p><p> </p><p>“That’s not what-” Amon stopped himself. “Thank you.” </p><p> </p><p>He got off the bed, standing up awkwardly. Ichiro was about the same height as him, only slightly shorter. Ichiro turned and left the room, Amon following him. </p><p> </p><p>“It’s like- four o’clock, you’ve been out for a while. Uhm- are you hungry? I can make something for you. Or..? I don’t have much food, I need to go to the store actually, but if you’re hungry I can definitely make something.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon stared at Ichiro, utterly confused. </p><p> </p><p>“If I hadn’t woken up with a headache, I’d say you were the one with a head injury. Are you sure you’re doing alright?” </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro turned around, and suddenly the two men were face to face. Amon was hit with a flash of deja vu to last night in the alleyway. Ichiro took a step back, distancing himself from the other man. Amon’s confusion deepened. If Ichiro had been his normal self, he would have stepped as close as possible to Amon, flirting with him and maybe even kissing him. Amon would have liked that more than the weird state Ichiro was in. </p><p> </p><p>Amon reached out and grabbed the other man’s wrist, pulling him back in. </p><p> </p><p>“Ichiro, I just wanted to say-” </p><p> </p><p>“Stop.” Ichiro wouldn’t meet Amon’s eyes, but he didn’t pull away again. They had only been working together for a few months, and most of their time together had been spent in Ichiro’s office, pouring over hundreds of reports, trying to find something that would lead to answers about Rabbit and Vulture. Amon had enjoyed their banter, Ichiro shamelessly flirting with him, and Amon laughing it off. </p><p> </p><p>His encounter with Vulture had only opened his eyes to how much he needed Ichiro there to support him. He also couldn’t shake that feeling of another body next to him, holding him close, kissing him. Amon steeled himself for what he was about to do, again, remembering last night in the alley. </p><p> </p><p>Amon lifted Ichiro’s chin so that they were making eye contact. </p><p> </p><p>“Ichiro, I’ve been thinking. My fight with that ghoul went so bad because you weren’t there. I need you by my side to help me. I could have died if another ghoul found me in that alleyway, but you saved me. Could you handle that? Working with me <em>very </em>closely? Or are you all talk?” </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro laughed, though his eyes were shining with tears. His laugh was the best sound Amon had heard in a while.</p><p>“God, you suck at flirting, Amon.” </p><p> </p><p>“I’m better at kissing, trust me.” Ichiro laughed again, leaning into Amon’s chest and meeting the other man’s lips with his own.</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
  <b></b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro woke, panicked. He rarely slept until morning, as nightmares often consumed him. He’d just had a particularly bad one, where he was executed at a CCG press event by Amon.  </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Sunlight streamed through the blinds of his bedroom, and he was wrapped in the warm embrace of Koutaro Amon. Ichiro relaxed, matching his breathing to Amon’s. He wasn’t sure what it was about the dove that interested him so much. He felt guilty for deceiving Amon with his two identities; that of Vulture and Ichiro. He’d been shocked when Amon had kissed him as Vulture, not sure what had been going through the other man’s mind. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amon didn’t appear to be someone who would just fuck around with whoever he wanted, but their interaction in that alleyway must have been a fluke. Ichiro remembered what had caused Amon’s panic: Vulture biting his bottom lip and neck. Ichiro knew it hadn’t been painful and wasn’t even a ghoul-related action. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He should have recognized the impact and implication of the action, but he had been too confused and in all honesty, too horny to think about the ramifications. He had felt betrayed by Amon’s reaction, but once away from the other man had realized he was being unfair. Amon had been nothing but honest, and here Ichiro was, living a double life. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro played with Amon’s cross necklace, the silver metal shining on Amon’s bare chest. Again, Ichiro wondered how he’d ended up in this situation. He had been incredibly nervous that Amon would recognize his true identity by the scar on his face, but the investigator seemed to not have noticed the scar on Vulture. Ichiro had originally intended to kill Amon when they first met. An investigator looking into his actions was not ideal at all, and Ichiro easily could have staged his death. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>However, he head and still felt guilty for drugging the other man. He’s dosed him once, lightly, in a glass of water Amon had ordered at the club. Ichiro had pretended to be drunk too, dancing wildly with the other man, sloppily kissing him, and then stumbling to his house. The effects of the drug had started to wear off, and Amon seemed so incredibly lonely and without companionship that Ichiro had ignored the second dose he was supposed to give Amon. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He regretted doing anything with Amon, even when given full consent by the other man and even though they didn’t have sex. He drugged Amon for the second time when he was getting too insistent about them having sex. Ichiro wasn’t sure if it was because of the drug or Amon was really just lonely. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro had crushed up a few sleeping pills, dissolved them in water, and given it to Amon. The man was asleep in minutes. Ichiro slept next to him, fretting over his decision not to kill the investigator, until deciding he would just observe Amon, promising himself he’d kill him if he got too close to the truth. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Bored of thinking about his many failures as a ghoul, Ichiro inched closer to Amon until they were pressed together, burying his face in the other man’s chest. Amon shifted, disturbed by Ichiro’s movements. Ichiro could feel Amon’s gaze on the top of his head and responded by burying his face even more. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Damn,” Amon said. “So yesterday wasn’t just a fever dream?” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro shook his head no. Speaking into Amon’s chest, Ichiro replied. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you rather it was?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey…” Amon said. He readjusted himself so that Ichiro had to make eye contact with him. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I would be destroyed if yesterday was a dream. You matter to me, Ichiro.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro mumbled something incoherent. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What was that?” Amon asked, having trouble concealing his smile. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro lightly punched Amon in the shoulder. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You matter to me too, you jerk.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Amon laughed at Ichiro, then gently untangled himself from the other man and the bedsheets. Ichiro frowned, propping himself up with his elbow. Amon stood, stretched, and got dressed. Ichiro watched him appreciatively. Amon glanced at him and blushed when he noticed Ichiro was watching. Ichiro yawned. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you getting ready for?” Amon stared at him. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“We have to go to work.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro groaned, collapsing back in bed. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m just gonna sleep for a while.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro felt the bed dip down next to him. Amon must have sat down. Amon’s calloused hands rubbed Ichiro’s back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re going to have to wake up soon. Do you want me to make you breakfast?” Ichiro stilled, breathing shallow. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll just grab something from the cafe near here. I don’t have much food here.” Amon hummed in acknowledgment, still rubbing Ichiro’s back. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Go to work you big overachiever, I’ll catch up with you later. Ichiro rolled onto his back, thwarting Amon’s massage attempts. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“They might unassign us from the mission if we’re seen so close together.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine,” Amon replied, leaning down to kiss Ichiro goodbye. Ichiro leaned into the kiss, savoring it as if it would be their last. (Which it very well might be) Amon left the bedroom, and soon Ichiro heard his front door close. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>He let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. Ichiro pondered how long it would be before his secret was discovered. Was it even worth it? He was sure they wouldn’t be together for long, considering their profession and current investigation. Ichiro only wished they could at least have a few days. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro stopped at Anteiku as he had told Amon he would. He needed a drink, something a little stronger than coffee.  </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Touka waved as he entered the coffee shop, the sound of bells letting her know he was there. The shop was empty except for Touka, and the shop’s newest recruit, Kaneki. As usual, Kaneki was making goo-goo eyes at Touka, and Touka was pretending to be angry at him. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“You have any of those pies left?” Ichiro asked. “You know, the special ones.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Touka sighed dramatically, disappearing into another room to retrieve Ichiro’s meal.  While Ichiro didn’t work at Anteiku, he did his best to help them whenever he could. He warned them about the CCG and ghouls being violent near the 20th ward. In return, they fed him from time to time. Ichiro also made suggestions for their cafe. Ways the CCG would ignore them even more, and his latest idea, a meat pie for ghouls. Touka hated when he made suggestions, but when she heard about and then tasted the meal he made, she agreed it would be a good idea. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Almost identical to human food, the meat pies were one hundred percent made of human flesh. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Touka returned with Ichiro’s meal, and he thanked her, sitting down to enjoy his food. She sat next to him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro, you practically reek of human. And yet you’re here, asking for a meal. What’s going on?” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro took a bite of his meat pie to avoid answering her question. When it became apparent she would not relent, he mumbled. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Recreational activities.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Touka’s eyebrows raised, and Kaneki muffled a laugh at her expression. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you messing around with that dove? We saw him leaving your building earlier.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro choked on his food, not sure whether to laugh or act horrified at her accusation. Touka sighed, taking his silence as an answer. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro, you’re putting us all in danger. What if he saw you come here? He can’t be so stupid that he’ll never found out you’re a ghoul.” </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“What about your little human friend, Touka? What if she finds out you’re a ghoul? She knows where you live and that you work here. Isn’t that more of a hazard?” Ichiro replied. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“All I’m trying to say is that you need to be careful. Think with your brain, not your dick.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro considered this. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Look,” He said. “I doubt it will go anywhere. If he finds out the truth, then I’ll do what’s necessary.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Depending on his reaction,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Ichiro thought. He chided himself for wishful thinking. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He’s a fucking dove, remember his reaction in the alley.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Touka looked at him with something like pity. Ichiro glared back, and she laughed. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Damn, Ichiro. You’ve really fallen for him, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“I have not,” Ichiro muttered, standing up to leave. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Good luck Ichiro!” Kaneki called. Ichiro looked back at him in surprise, then left the coffee shop.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>edit 7/28/20: </p><p>combined chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Aogiri</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Amon threw down the file folder in frustration. He had a splitting headache from hours of reading the tiny print detailing sightings of Vulture. Amon still couldn’t understand the ghoul’s behavior. He had let Amon kiss him, even enjoyed it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon glanced up as Ichiro entered the room, carrying another cup of coffee from the office pot. Ichiro set down the cup, which was still steaming. Amon was careful not to spill it as he relished the bitter taste. He was sure Ichiro would not appreciate it if Amon spilled coffee on his desk. Ichiro’s office was small, and like his house, sparsely decorated with anything personal. A large desk sat in the middle of the room, with two chairs surrounding it. The floor was tile, and one wall of Ichiro’s office was a window. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon had asked Ichiro why he didn’t spend more time in this room and instead worked in the cubicles. Ichiro had shrugged, claiming that he needed the company of the others to work. He’d added that if he had a question that only someone in that room could answer, he’d have to walk down three flights of stairs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro turned around and closed the door, silencing the few outside sounds of people talking and  shoes squeaking. Amon swallowed, becoming acutely aware that they were now alone. Instead of taking the completely free chair next to Amon’s, Ichiro sat on Amon’s lap. Amon felt his face grow hot as Ichiro turned so that he was facing Amon, straddling him. Ichiro leaned in but didn’t kiss him, just studying Amon. Amon’s lips tingled with the phantom touch of Ichiro’s. He decided to close the distance, cupping Ichiro’s face gently. Amon felt the other man smile into their kiss before he pulled away. Hands still on Ichiro’s face, Amon gently traced the outline of Ichiro’s scar, marveling at how far it traveled. He traced from Ichiro’s eyebrow to collar bone, Amon moved aside the collar of Ichiro’s shirt to continue tracing the scar. He felt Ichiro swallow, almost nervously at his touch. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon had a faint memory that he had seen a similar scar somewhere else before. Something hard brushed against his leg, and Ichiro smiled apologetically. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We really should be working, shouldn’t we?” Ichiro asked. Amon nodded, not trusting his voice. With a sigh, Ichiro removed himself from Amon’s lap and looked pointedly at the file folder. Amon cleared his throat and looked back at the folder. He was trying to create an accurate appearance for Vulture so they could differentiate the real sightings from the fake. Amon still hadn’t told anyone about his experience in the alley, and he didn’t know if he would. What would Ichiro think of him, making out with a ghoul he was supposed to dispatch?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A memory of the ghoul’s face tugged at Amon, but he couldn’t quite picture it. The top half of the ghoul’s face has been obscured by his mask, but there had been something noteworthy about his face. A sneaking suspicion tugged at Amon’s mind. He immediately dismissed it. That was impossible. Anxiety filled him like a tidal wave, crushing all of his other thoughts. Ichiro couldn’t be Vulture, that was impossible. Amon remembered the familiar taste and feel of Vulture’s lips on his. He’d woken up next to Ichiro, hadn’t he? Ichiro had claimed that they hadn’t ‘fucked’ as he put it, but that they’d done other things. They must have kissed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon had been so focused on kissing Vulture that he couldn’t be sure if they had the same scar or not, but he gulped. Vulture had seemed like he knew Amon. Amon had been working with Ichiro for months, but he couldn’t remember one time he had seen Ichiro eat. Maybe Ichiro was just self-conscious about eating? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A buzzing sound pulled Amon out of his thoughts. Ichiro sighed behind him, and Amon turned to see the other man (ghoul?) take his phone out of his pocket to answer it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s Juuzou,” Ichiro said, sounding confused. He squeezed Amon’s shoulder and Amon tensed. Ichiro frowned at him but answered his phone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Juuzou? What’s going on?” Ichiro sounded genuinely concerned. A voice answered him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shit. Are you hurt?” Amon’s phone buzzed, and he looked at the screen. It was a text from the CCG administration. It read ‘Aogiri Tree headed to HQ. Evacuation recommended for non-essential personnel. All Special Class Investigators should prepare to defend HQ.’ </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro was still talking to Juuzou in a hushed tone, assuring the boy that he’d done his best and it was going to be okay. An explosion rumbled in the distance, and another followed, closer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shit shit shit shit shit.” Ichiro muttered, ending his call. He looked at Amon, worried. Amon forgot all about his suspicions about Vulture’s identity. There was no way Ichiro could be Vulture, let alone a ghoul. If he was a ghoul, how did he get past the RC cell gates? The CCG was confident that their technology made no mistakes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An explosion rocked the building, much closer now. The floor beneath them tilted, and Amon stumbled. Ichiro caught and steadied him. and steadied him, pulling Amon closer. Amon could feel Ichiro’s heart racing as he hugged the other man, tight. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you going to stay and fight?” Amon asked Ichiro. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Who else would watch your back? If you’re staying, so am I.” Ichiro replied. Ichiro gently untangled himself from Amon and walked to his desk. He opened a drawer and removed a wallet. Amon frowned at him. Seeing his confusion, Ichiro smirked and opened the wallet. It immediately transformed into a set of two quinque knives. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Damn.” Amon murmured, thoroughly impressed. Ichiro twirled the knives and gestured to the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go then.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon left the room, holding the door for Ichiro as they stepped into the battle. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro didn’t enjoy killing other ghouls. He simply did what he needed to do to survive, and killing these Aogiri Tree members was no different. He dodged one’s kagune, then slashed upwards with his blades. Two thin lines opened up the ghoul’s chest, and he fell. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro made sure to keep his speed and agility in check, to appear human to anyone watching. No doubt the ghouls could smell him, but with the chaos and confusion, he hoped they would not take interest in him. Searching through the crowd of bodies, he spotted Amon’s broad shoulders. Ichiro watched appreciatively as Amon smashed in a ghoul’s head with Dojima. Weighing the risk, Ichiro vaulted over the pile of ghouls bodies in front of him, landing softly next to Amon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They fought side by side for a while, felling the ghouls as the crowd began to thin. Occasionally, Ichiro would spot other investigators fighting. Shinohara was there, but Juuzou seemed to be absent. Ichiro frowned, unfocused for just a second, and it almost cost him his life. Amon deflected the ghoul’s kagune aimed at Ichiro’s heart with the handle of Dojima, raising the quinque in preparation to strike a killing blow, but there was no need. Some unheard order had been communicated, and Aogiri Tree began to disperse. Soon there were none left, save for Touka’s annoying brother, Ayato. Ayato spit a curse at the investigators, glaring directly at Ichiro, his message clear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Traitor.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ayato sprinted to the nearest window and leaped out, disappearing. Ichiro sighed with faked exhaustion, and transformed his quinque back into a wallet, and stuck it into the inside pocket of his standard-issue gray trench coat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Beside him, Amon was breathing heavily, cuts and bruises mottling his face. Ichiro resisted the strong urge to lick the blood off of the other man’s face. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Now is certainly not the time</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought. Thankfully, his attention was diverted by Director Marude calling them all together for a quick briefing. He thanked them for staying and fighting, then let them know they would be free to take the next few days off, given they still write reports from home. Marude dismissed them, then shook his head sadly, staring at the carnage all around them. Many investigators had not made it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro hunted down Shinohara and learned that Juuzou had been badly wounded in the first fight. Shinohara had locked the young investigator in a janitor’s closet to prevent him from joining the fight. Ichiro bid him farewell, glad Juuzou was not dead. That was not another death that he could deal with. As discreetly and professionally as possible, Ichiro found Amon. He was talking to Akira, Mado’s daughter. A tendril of jealousy snaked its way through Ichiro’s mind. He paused and reminded himself of what he was hiding from Amon. What right did he have, feeling jealous?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro calmly made his way to them, studying their expressions. He couldn’t read their lips, and the general hubbub of the lobby made it difficult to hear anything from a distance. Amon looked nervous, and Akira kept her same cool poker face as she responded. Then she turned and looked directly at Ichiro. Her gaze was piercing and showed no emotion. It was too late to turn back now, so Ichiro approached the pair, keeping his distance from Akira and her icy stare. He decided to ignore her and looked at Amon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Uh.. hey. What’s the plan?” Amon looked deeply uncomfortable, and he wouldn’t meet Ichiro’s eyes.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m pretty banged up, so I’m going to head home to clean myself up. Um.. would you like to join me so we can.. uh... review paperwork?” Akira snorted, clearly unconvinced by Amon’s excuse, and he glared at her. Akira broke her gaze away from Ichiro and nodded to Amon, turning to leave. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Remember what I told you.” She called back as she walked away. Ichiro furrowed his brow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What is she talking about?” He asked Amon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry about it,” He replied. “It’s nothing.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Needless to say, the taxi ride to Amon’s apartment was full of awkward silence. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon unlocked the door to his apartment and turned to let Ichiro enter. The other man brushed past him, making Amon’s skin tingle. Amon stepped into the apartment and locked the door behind him. Another wave of exhaustion rolled over him. He was tired of fighting, tired of speculating about Ichiro’s identity, especially after his conversation with Akira. Uncharacteristically, she had told him something about her past, how her childhood best friend (and then-girlfriend) had told Akira she was a ghoul. Feeling a sense of duty, Akira had reported her to the CCG and had watched her father kill her girlfriend. She had said it was the biggest regret of her life.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon studied Ichiro, watching how he fidgeted with his hands behind his back while keeping a  cool expression. His poker face would have been almost as good as Akira’s but Amon was better at picking up on Ichiro’s expressions then discerning anything from Akira.</span>
  <em>
    <span> Would I be angry if he was a ghoul? </span>
  </em>
  <span>Amon wondered. He realized how ridiculous that sounded, especially coming from him, an investigator who had sworn that he hated ghouls. Mado must have been rolling in his grave. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon sat down on the couch in his living room and patted the space beside him, inviting Ichiro to sit next to him. Ichiro seemed to consider sitting on his lap again, but one look at Amon’s battered face and bruised body made him think otherwise. He sat next to Amon, keeping an appropriate amount of distance as if they were simply friendly co-workers. Ichiro had procured a first aid kit from the CCG medics and now opened it. He dabbed at Amon’s face and neck, cleaning the cuts and scrapes. He seemed to be concentrating hard on something, though Amon couldn’t be sure what. Ichiro reached up again to clean another cut, but Amon grabbed his wrist. The washcloth dipped in rubbing alcohol dropped from Ichiro’s hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What are you hiding, Ichiro?” Amon asked. He’d meant to not vocalize his thoughts, but he had just spoken the words. Ichiro’s face tightened, and his expression became guarded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What makes you think I’m hiding something? I haven’t lied to you. Recently.” Ichiro amended. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon’s confusion grew. From what he could tell, Ichiro was being truthful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I think I know what it is you won’t share,” Amon said. “It involves a dark alley and the identity of a certain ghoul. You let me kiss you then. Why?” Ichiro stood suddenly, knocking the first aid kit to the ground. Bandages spilled everywhere. In seconds, Ichiro was at the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro. Wait…” Ichiro shook his head, fumbling with the lock. He looked as if he’d cry. Slowly, Amon stood, and cautiously made his way to Ichiro, speaking in a soft voice, he tried to calm the other man. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Listen, I’m not going to hurt you. Dojima is over there, not in my hands. If I was going to kill you, I would have tried already, though I’m sure you would’ve won. You’re very strong.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon was close enough to Ichiro now to kiss him. He could hear Ichiro’s panicked breathing, but he was no longer trying to leave. Amon put his arms around Ichiro and pulled him close, breathing deeply until Ichiro’s breathing matched his. Ichiro’s heart was pounding, and Amon could feel it even through the layers of clothes they wore. Slowly and deliberately, Amon tilted Ichiro’s face up and kissed him, gently biting at his lower lip. Ichiro stilled completely in their embrace, not kissing Amon back, but not pulling away. When Amon pulled back, he saw that Ichiro really was crying now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why..?” Ichiro asked. Gently, Amon guided him back to the couch and sat down, pulling Ichiro down next to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Will you show me?” Amon asked. When Ichiro titled his head in confusion, Amon amended his statement. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Your eyes. Show me that I’m right, and I swear I won’t report you.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro let out a harsh, broken sound, somewhere between a sob and a laugh. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You expect me to believe you? I show you my eyes and you kill me. Your quinque is right there. Other ghouls have been killed for less.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His voice broke on the last words, overcome by emotion. Amon glanced at Dojima, which was in suitcase form. It was easily within his reach, resting on the floor. He kicked it away, and it slid across the floor into the kitchen. Amon wondered if he’d be able to make it there in time if this was all an elaborate trick. If it was, and he had judged Ichiro wrong, he probably deserved being eaten. Amon smiled at the ghoul next to him nervously. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“See? No more quinque.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I could easily kill you right now.” Ichiro murmured. Amon flinched. “That’s right, you should be afraid. After all... what is it you called me in the alley? Oh, that’s right. A filthy ghoul.” Ichiro turned to look at Amon, and his eyes were all black with red pupils. Dark veins spread across his face from his eyes. Amon gulped. He’d been right, which meant he had been sleeping next to a ghoul. Why hadn’t Ichiro killed him? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The wind was knocked out of him as Ichiro pinned him to the couch, straddling his waist. Amon was utterly helpless. What certainly wasn’t helping was how tight his pants were feeling. </span>
  <em>
    <span>This is how Special Investigator Koutaro Amon died, the newspaper would say. His throat was ripped out by his sort-of-boyfriend who turned out to be a ghoul, while all he could think about was how he wanted said ghoul to bend him over and...</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon quickly avoided the thought, not wanting to make his embarrassment any worse. Ichiro leaned forward until he was nose-to-nose with Amon. Ichiro licked the blood off of Amon’s split lip, and Amon shivered at the sensation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You taste good…” Ichiro mused. Amon let out an involuntary moan as Ichiro re-adjusted his position on top of Amon. Amon grabbed Ichiro’s hips and pulled him down until they were completely flat against each other. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro,” Amon whispered into the ghoul’s ear. “Just wanted to let you know that I’d let you fuck me even though you’re a ghoul.” Ichiro stilled against Amon’s chest, his breathing shallow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t you care that I’m a monster?” Ichiro asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“For all your flirting ability, you’re not so great at foreplay,” Amon answered. “And, I’ve started to see things from a new perspective. You and that ghoul Eyepatch have proved that you’re not all monsters.” Ichiro’s eyes returned to normal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I- what?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amon growled in frustration. He sat up and began to unbutton his shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do I have to do to make you understand that I don’t care what you are? You said you haven’t lied to me recently, and that’s good enough reason to trust you. You could have killed me a million times we were together but you didn’t. You let me kiss you then, and I really </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> want you to kiss me now. So either kill me, run away, or stay here with me. Just get it through your thick skull that I care about you.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro looked down at Amon slyly after he processed what the other man had said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You really </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> want me to kiss you? That’s all?” Ichiro moved his body against Amon’s much more than necessary when taking off a shirt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro I- god, you know what I want just please-” Amon arched his back as Ichiro pinched his nipple. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I need an enthusiastic yes, Amon. I can’t read your mind.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Amon almost screamed. He was impatient. “One thousand times yes.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If you say so,” Ichiro said, that crooked smile he always wore plastered on his face as he reached down to unbutton Amon’s pants. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They fucked on the couch. Apparently a medic at the CCG had guessed where the day was headed, as there were condoms and a bottle of lube mixed among the fallen bandages and other medical supplies. Amon undressed Ichiro, fumbling with the button of his pants. Soon they were both only in their undergarments. Ichiro wore a thong because </span>
  <em>
    <span>of course, he would do something like that</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Amon wore plain boxer briefs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon ran his hands up and down Ichiro’s body, tracing the v his hips made and gently rubbing his nipples. Ichiro sighed, shivering with delight. Amon’s cock was slightly poking Ichiro’s ass through Amon’s briefs, and Ichiro rubbed the tent forming behind him in Amon’s boxers. Amon moaned loudly. Ichiro hoped the walls weren’t paper-thin. They hadn’t fucked before, so Ichiro wasn’t sure exactly what Amon wanted him to do. Amon answered his unspoken question.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“God Ichiro, please just fuck me already-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro got off of Amon, allowing the other man to turn around. Amon didn’t lay down, but kneeled, his bare back facing Ichiro. Ichiro removed his own undergarments, then moved on to Amon’s, which he left around the other man’s knees. Ichiro pushed Amon forward so that he was on his hands and knees, and lined his hips up with Amon’s but didn’t penetrate him. He wasn’t sure if Amon had even had sex before, and he didn’t want to injure the other man. They would take it slow and steady. Ichiro squeezed lube onto his pointer finger and rubbed it against Amon’s entrance. Amon shivered, the cold lube a unique sensation against his skin. Tentatively, Ichiro stuck a finger inside of Amon and curled it. He remembered the long time Amon had spent in the bathroom at the CCG before they had left and shook his head in amusement. Amon had been prepared to be fucked. Ichiro wondered if that was his plan all along. It didn’t matter to him right now. He inserted a second finger and experimented by pulling out of Amon and then back in. Sweat beaded Amon’s neck and back, and he moaned. Ichiro felt his cock twitch at the sound. He stroked himself with one hand, penetrating Amon with the other. He wanted to be ready to enter Amon when the other man could handle it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I- I’m ready,” Amon said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You sure?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes. Please just- oh god.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He sure says god a lot for someone who wears a cross, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Ichiro thought. The metal gleamed around Amon’s neck as Ichiro removed his fingers from Amon and put on the waiting condom. He rubbed the tip of his cock against Amon’s entrance, then penetrated him. Amon cried out as Ichiro pushed his cock as far in as he could. He felt Amon clench around him and smiled in satisfaction. He thrust in and out of Amon and reached around to stroke the other man’s cock. All the sensation was too much for Amon He trembled, panting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I-I- I’m gonna.” Amon moaned. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro increased the speed of his thrusts and they climaxed at the same time, Ichiro thrusting particularly deep into Amon and stroking Amon’s head. Amon came into Ichiro’s hand as Ichiro allowed himself to moan in satisfaction, cumming too. Ichiro removed himself from Amon, and took off his condom, tying it at the top. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon guided him into the bathroom, where Ichiro threw away the condom while Amon turned on the shower. Amon cleaned off Ichiro, gently rubbing soap onto his back, then letting the water wipe it off. They dried each other off with towels, and Amon gestured for Ichiro to come with him into Amon’s bedroom. They fell asleep with their limbs tangled together, Amon’s chin resting on top of Ichiro’s head, stroking his hair gently. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro woke up alone, tangled in the white sheets of Amon’s bed. The bed frame was a light-colored wood and non-descript, and the mattress could easily fit three people.  There seemed to be no personality in any of Amon’s possessions, only utility. Sunlight filtered through the blinds of the singular window in the room, right above the bed. Ichiro sat up and noticed the pile of clothes Amon had left, neatly folded on the floor. The clothes were not Ichiro’s save for his investigator’s coat. Ichiro heard the slight rumble of a machine and the slosh of water in the distance, so he assumed clothes- probably his from yesterday- were being washed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stood and stretched, the wood floor cold on his bare feet. Ichiro pulled on the boxers and the shirt Amon had left for him. The t-shirt was a light blue and was giant on him, the hem almost went to his knees and the collar slipped off of his shoulders. While Amon was only slightly taller, his shoulders were wider and he was bulkier than Ichiro. Ichiro ignored the pants Amon had left but picked up his coat. Ichiro opened the door and peeked out. The bathroom was directly in front of him, the door opened and lights off. Down the hallway, there was a closet door. The hallway ended in another room, and the rumbling sound of the washing machine was coming from that direction. The other end of the hallway led to the living room. Pots and pans clattered in the kitchen, and water ran. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro made his way down the hallway and into the living room. The spilled first aid kit had been cleaned up. Ichiro’s cheeks grew warm at the thought of what they’d done on that couch yesterday. Dismissing the thought, he entered the kitchen. Amon’s back was to him, and the other man was wearing a gray t-shirt and black athletic shorts. It appeared he was cleaning up after a meal. The smell of human food in the air confirmed that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” Ichiro said. He still wasn’t sure what was going to happen to him, and if Amon would keep his word. While Amon seemed to care for him, Ichiro could never be sure what he would do. Amon shut off the water and turned to look at him. He drummed his fingers on the sides of the sink, leaning back and fully facing Ichiro. Nervously, Ichiro walked up to Amon. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” Amon responded. He removed his hands from the edge of the sink, standing and putting his arms around Ichiro’s waist. He pulled Ichiro close and kissed him. Ichiro melted into the embrace, his worries disappearing. Their kiss deepened, but Amon pulled away. He sounded out of breath when he asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How’d you sleep?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro rolled his shoulders, sore in all the right places. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Good,” He said. “Though I missed waking up next to you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon let go of Ichiro’s waist and rubbed the back of his neck. Ichiro immediately missed the contact and moved closer to Amon, pressing against him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, sorry about that,” Amon said. “I was hungry. Umm, speaking of that, are you.. Uh... when’s the last time you ate?” Ichiro considered this. He shrugged. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“A few days ago.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So you’re not…?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Going to eat you? No.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon let out what sounded like a sigh of relief. Ichiro glared at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Besides, I don’t eat humans if I can avoid it. Draws too much attention.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon paled a little, but he nodded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So… what do you eat then?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro sighed in exasperation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I thought you were a decent investigator, Amon. You’ve been working on my case. Why don’t you tell me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon gulped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’ve been credited with eating other ghouls once they’ve killed a human.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro nodded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I haven’t killed anyone who didn’t deserve it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro could feel Amon’s heart pounding. Then he did something unexpected. He hugged Ichiro, then kissed his forehead. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ichiro, I want you to tell me how we really met and as much about yourself as you feel comfortable. I feel like I don’t know you enough and if we’re going to continue this, I need to know you.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro suddenly found it difficult to swallow, but he nodded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How much time do you have?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They sat across from each other on the kitchen floor, too embarrassed to return to the couch. Ichiro explained how he was going to kill Amon the night they met and how he had decided not to, even though he drugged him. (Ichiro couldn’t meet Amon’s eyes while he explained this.) Then he talked about growing up as a ghoul, orphaned by age seven, and how he became part of a human family through adoption. His family soon discovered he was a ghoul, but they were too attached to report him. They got him food from suicides and car accidents. (His adopted mom had been a doctor, his father a funeral home director.) </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro learned how to stomach human food at school, then went home and vomited for hours. His older sister would sit next to him and rub his back, telling him it would be ok. Ichiro talked about how he went to college. He skipped over the dark part of his life and his family’s unfortunate fate. He instead said they weren’t in contact anymore. He explained how he joined the CCG, slowly working his way up as he tried to find out who his parents had been. He didn’t remember them, but he was sure they were killed by doves. Amon asked how he remained undetected at the CCG, and why the RC gates didn’t expose him as a ghoul. Ichiro shrugged. He didn’t know. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he finished his story, he looked up at Amon, expecting to see disgust in his eyes. Instead, all he saw was pity. Ichiro wasn’t a huge fan of that either, but he could accept it. Amon scooted next to Ichiro and hugged him while he cried. When Ichiro was done, Amon talked about his childhood and growing up in the church orphanage. The anger coming off of him was palpable as he talked about his foster father and the horrifying discovery he’d made. His voice softened as he talked about how he was taken in by the CCG, and his time training to be an investigator. As he finished his story, he added. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If it wasn’t for that ghoul Eyepatch, we probably wouldn’t be sitting here right now. My perspective started to change after the conversation I had with him.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ichiro shivered. Would he seriously have to thank Kaneki for helping him get laid? Ichiro ignored the thought. His charming personality had obviously won Amon over. Amon watched Ichiro’s expression closely as he asked:</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you know Eyepatch and Rabbit?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shifting uncomfortably, Ichiro pondered what the correct response would be. He trusted Amon not to kill or report him, but he couldn’t put others in danger. He decided on a response. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve met them before. Both were compassionate and driven by their own values and goals, just as humans are.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon seemed to have decided to let the topic be. He stood, and offered a hand to Ichiro to help him stand. Ichiro took it, and Amon pulled him up and into an embrace. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Thank you for trusting me.” Amon whispered. Ichiro responded by kissing him, ready to face whatever challenges life had in store for them. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>edit 7/28/20- combined chapters 8-12</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Owl Extermination</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ichiro was in fact, not ready to face the challenges life had in store for him. It had started off ok, the weeks he’s spent with Amon were calm and uneventful. The CCG had diverted their attention from the Vulture case as Vulture had not appeared recently and focused on other cases. Ichiro and Amon didn’t work together anymore, but that didn’t stop them from making everyone in the office uncomfortable. Affection was not common in the CCG and often ended in tragedy. Their coworkers would whisper about them and bet on how long it would last. Amon pretended he didn’t hear them, but Ichiro glared at them until they blanched. Maybe life hadn’t been perfect, but it had been manageable. Then, of course, Aogiri had to kidnap Kaneki. No one at Anteiku would do anything, insisting that they needed a plan first, so here Ichiro was. </p><p> </p><p>His boots (specially enhanced so that they were quinque toed boots so he could kick some ghoul ass) crunched through the unexpected snow Tokyo had been experiencing for the past few weeks. He increased his speed through the dirty alley, making his way to the meeting spot he had decided on. The cold air bit at his lungs as Ichiro waited for the sun to set, compulsively checking the time on his phone. A small thump and the distinct smell of another ghoul alerted him to the other’s arrival. Ichiro turned and sighed in dismay at who had been sent. Ayato Kirishima stood before him in all of his blue-haired self-righteous glory. </p><p> </p><p>“Did Tatara send you just to piss me off?” Ichiro muttered. </p><p> </p><p>Ayato sidled up to him as if the last time they’d seen each other both hadn’t sworn to kill the other. He was so close to Ichiro that if either took a step forward their noses would bump. Ayato reached out his hand as if to touch Ichiro’s face, but Ichiro slapped it away, pushing Ayato back. Hurt crossed Ayato’s face, but it was quickly masked by anger. </p><p> </p><p>“I hope it worked,” Ayato growled. “What do you want?” </p><p> </p><p>“You know why I contacted Aogiri. Tell me where he is.” </p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ayato said, as he crossed his arms and glared. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro kicked him in the ribs, earning a gasp of pain from Ayato who crumpled to the ground. </p><p> </p><p>“Some gang member you are. “ Ichiro teased. “Now tell me, where is Ken Kaneki?” </p><p> </p><p>Ayato laughed and coughed up blood, shakily getting to his feet. </p><p> </p><p>“He’s spending some quality time with Jason. I’ve never seen the big guy so excited to torture someone.”</p><p> </p><p>Ayato lunged towards Ichiro, tackling him, and Ichiro hit the ground. Something in his back popped. Ayato straddled him, hands around Ichiro’s throat choking him. Ichiro gasped for air, and Ayato sneered down at him, squeezing tighter. Ichiro knew what he wanted, but he would not do it. He would not beg for his life so Ayato could get off from his suffering. </p><p> </p><p>“Remember the fun we had together, Ichiro? We could live like that again! All you have to do is forget Kaneki and Anteiku, and join Aogiri, join me. Just like old times…” </p><p> </p><p>“A-yato…” Ichiro choked. Ayato loosened his grip, and Ichiro lifted his arms between Ayato’s as if to embrace him. Ayato leaned down, eager for the contact. At the last possible second, Ichiro slammed his arms outward against Ayato’s. The other man’s elbows cracked, completely broken, and he fell towards Ichiro. Ichiro rolled to the side and stood, brushing the dirt off of his clothes. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re an idiot if you think I’d ever join you. Especially now while Jason tortures Kaneki on your orders. I hate you for what you did, and that won’t change anytime soon.” Ichiro turned to leave, but Ayato called out to him. </p><p> </p><p>“You think I don’t know the CCG is raiding our base this very moment?” He giggled, then continued. “We’ll see if Kaneki makes it… will Jason kill him first or will the doves make it there in time?”</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro froze. He hadn’t heard about the raid at all. He knew he couldn’t show up as either Vulture or an investigator. Too many questions would be asked. He left Ayato in the alley, and then ran to Anteiku. If they were waiting for an opportunity, now was the time for them to act. Ichiro just hoped he'd make it there in time. </p><p> </p><p>---------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p>Kaneki was alive. That was such good news that he almost didn’t hear when Touka added bitterly that he had joined Aogiri.</p><p> </p><p>“What?” Ichiro almost shouted into the phone. Amon stared at him from across Ichiro’s desk. They were supposed to be meeting about Rabbit, but they had spent most of the time doing things that would get them fired if Marude found out. Ichiro was shirtless and sweaty, and Amon’s hair was rumpled and lips swollen from kissing. When the ringtone Ichiro had assigned for those who would only call if it was an emergency, Ichiro knew he had to answer. He’d distanced himself from the distraction in the room (Amon) and answered the phone. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, that idiot joined up with my brother! I can’t believe I let this happen, I should have stopped him or..” Touka trailed off and sniffled. “We should have listened to you and gone sooner.” </p><p> </p><p>“You had your reasons for waiting. There was an optimal distraction that saved you.” Ichiro sighed. “If you have to blame someone, blame your brother. He can really get into your head, especially when his target is vulnerable.” </p><p> </p><p>Touka made a non-commital noise of agreement. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, I guess. Ugh, that idiot Nishiki just spilled coffee everywhere. I’ve got to go clean up, thanks Ichiro.” </p><p> </p><p>“Call me if you need anything,” Ichiro responded, then hung up to avoid listening to Touka scream at Nishiki. </p><p> </p><p>He sighed and sat down at his desk, putting his head in his hands. The creak of the chair and warmth behind him told him Amon had moved, but Ichiro didn’t look up. He silently cursed Ayato, Jason, Eto, and Tatara for making his life difficult. Calloused hands touched his bare shoulders, and Amon began to massage Ichiro’s back. Ichiro closed his eyes and leaned into the touch, trying to forget his worries. Lucky for him, he could forget everything when he was with Amon. </p><p> </p><p>“Shouldn’t you be with Akira right now?” Ichiro asked, hating himself for doing it. Amon leaned down and put his chin on Ichiro’s shoulder. </p><p> </p><p>“Probably.” He muttered. “We’re going to Cochlea today to see if anyone knows anything about the binge eater case.” Amon kissed Ichiro’s shoulder then moved and sat down across from Ichiro again. </p><p> </p><p>“When?” Ichiro asked, pulling his shirt back over his head. </p><p> </p><p>A sharp knock echoed on the wooden office door, and they both flinched. Not waiting for an answer, Akira opened the door. She had the sense to cover her eyes while she asked;</p><p> </p><p>“You two decent?”  </p><p> </p><p>“Yes, Akira.” They both said. She lowered her hand and glared at Amon. </p><p> </p><p>“We’re going to be late if you dally any longer,” she said, casting a sideways glance at Ichiro. He smirked at her, standing and wishing them goodbye. As Amon stood, Ichiro grabbed him by the tail end of his tie and pulled him in, kissing him. When he pulled away, Amon was blushing, while Akira grit her teeth and turned to leave the room. Amon followed her, nervously glancing back at Ichiro, who smiled and gave him a thumbs up. </p><p> </p><p>It was late that night when Amon trudged back to his apartment, which was unofficially where they were living. Ichiro woke to the sound of the shower running. He rubbed his eyes and glanced at the alarm. It read 2:47 in blinking red letters. He groaned and turned onto his back, waiting for Amon to be done. The sound of the shower cut off, but Amon still wasn’t out. When the smell of blood hit Ichiro’s nose, he knew something was wrong. He bolted out of bed and opened the bathroom door. </p><p> </p><p>Amon sat on the toilet lid, wearing only his boxer shorts. A large gash cut across his chest and slowly dripped blood onto the floor. Amon struggled with a needle and thread, attempting to stitch up the wound. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro grabbed the needle and thread from his hand, stopping him from trying to seal the cut again. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re doing it wrong,” Ichiro complained, kissing Amon before focusing on the injury. Ichiro kneeled in front of him and started blotting the wound with towels. The blood was slowing, and then he'd be able to stitch up the wound</p><p> </p><p>“There was an Aogiri attack at Cochlea while Akria and I were there.” He winced. “We had to fight Naki and his gang, now they're working with Aogiri. This is better than it looks, Akira got hurt pretty bad, so did Shinohara. Eyepatch was there and he was out of control. He almost killed Shinohara. ”</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro grimaced. He’d feared that after eating Jason, Kaneki would have the same out of control nature. It seemed he’d been right. The smell of Amon’s blood was overpowering and tantalizing. Ichiro had to concentrate deeply to ensure his eyes wouldn’t turn. Gripping Amon’s thigh, he pushed himself up and tentatively ran his tongue over the shallow cut. Blood filled his mouth and he felt Amon stiffen and shiver, but he didn’t pull away. About to bite down, Ichiro wrenched himself away from Amon’s torso, breathing heavily. He didn’t meet Amon’s eyes when he spoke. </p><p> </p><p>“Sorry…” he mumbled. “I got a little overwhelmed there.” A strong hand gripped his shoulder, and he was pulled onto Amon’s lap. They kissed deeply, and it wasn’t until blood soaked onto Ichiro’s skin that he remembered what he was supposed to be doing. Regretfully, he pulled away and went back to his position on the floor. Wordlessly, he began to stitch up the cut and sat back on his knees when he was finished. </p><p> </p><p>“You should be good for now,” Ichiro declared, putting away the first-aid kit. Amon patted his lap and reached out a hand to Ichiro, smiling shyly. Ichiro shook his head. </p><p> </p><p>“No rough activity until you are healed, we don’t want that cut reopening and getting infected.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon looked pointedly at Ichiro kneeling in front of him and his spread legs. Ichiro swatted his knee. </p><p> </p><p>“I patch you up and you expect me to suck your dick? Do you know how disgusting a bathroom is?” </p><p> </p><p>Amon shrugged and stood, lending Ichiro a hand. </p><p> </p><p>“I was kidding.” Ichiro glared at him. “Well, maybe only a little.” Ichiro swatted at him again, but Amon dodged, leading Ichiro to the bed. Much later they lay in bed, sweaty and even more exhausted than before. </p><p> </p><p>“I think I need another shower…” Amon murmured, half-asleep. </p><p> </p><p>“Shut up and go to sleep,” Ichiro said into his shoulder. </p><p> </p><p>---------------------------------------</p><p>The conference room door burst open and voices filled the air, drowning out the conversation Ichiro had been having with Amon. Amon sat in a plastic chair at the round wooden table that occupied the room. Ichiro stood behind him, leaning down to point out a sentence on the report Amon was reviewing. Ichiro straightened and squeezed Amon’s shoulder before backing up to a “we are co-workers and aren’t dating” distance. Marude entered the room, followed by Akira and Takizawa. Close behind them, Shinohara herded Juuzou into the room in front of him. The young investigator twirled a knife in his hand and clapped excitedly when he saw Ichiro. </p><p>“Hey, Ichiro!” Juuzou called out to him. “Look at my new stitches!” Juuzou shoved his hand in Ichiro’s face, wiggling his fingers. Ichiro ruffled his hair. </p><p>“They look very nice, Juuzou. Did they get infected again?” </p><p>“Nope!” Juuzou crowed, smiling. The room quieted as Arima entered, closing the door behind him. Armia unnerved Ichiro deeply. He was incredibly intelligent and observative. His cool demeanor masked any emotion. If it hadn’t been for him seeing them together, Ichiro would never have believed that Eto and Arima were… Juuzou smacked his arm and whispered;</p><p>“You’re staring…”</p><p>Ichiro broke his gaze and, realizing this was not a meeting he was supposed to attend, made his way to exit as Marude began speaking. </p><p>“As you received this morning in your mission briefing, we’ve gotten an important tip about the suspected ghoul organization in the 20th ward. Investigators Shinohara and Suzuya followed it up, and we believe the tip was correct. We’ve located them.” Sighs of relief echoed across the room, but Ichiro froze. They couldn’t mean Antieku, could they? </p><p>“We will proceed with this information by… Special Investigator Ichiro, are you supposed to be here?” Ichiro winced as all eyes turned towards him. He turned to face Marude and bowed. </p><p>“No, sir. I’m deeply sorry. I was helping Special Investigator Amon with a written report and I was distracted by your words. I’ll be on my way out now.” Ichiro scurried to the door but froze as a cool voice called out to him. </p><p>“Let him stay. His insight will be useful when considering our battle plans.” When Arima spoke, everyone around him listened. Marude, though upset with the suggestion, agreed. He wouldn’t directly defy Arima. Ichiro turned to meet Arima’s unreadable eyes and bowed again. He quietly sat next to Amon, pulling up a chair. The others followed suit while Marude continued to stand at the head of the table. Amon passed Ichiro his mission briefing, and Ichiro read it with growing horror. An anonymous tipster had suggested that they might be ghouls in a little coffee shop called Anteiku, and when investigated Shinohara had confirmed the tip. The CCG planned to raid the shop in days. Ichiro nervously bounced his leg under the table but was stopped when Amon hooked his leg around Ichiro’s, stilling it. Akira glared at them from across the table, and Juuzou played with the sleeve of Ichiro’s black suit. </p><p>Marude continued to speak of schematics and plans while the others broke in occasionally. Ichiro pushed away his worry and focused on the plan, trying to understand and memorize it as best as possible. He offered some suggestions which Marude grudgingly accepted, accounting for the plan. After a lunch break (which Ichiro took crying in the single-stall bathroom), they continued to finalize the plan. By dinner, everyone but Arima was irritated. Takizawa’s eyes were red and puffy. Ichiro observed him in pity. This was the young man’s first real fight and he had been tasked with filling out his will. </p><p>Finally, the plan was completed. Everyone was exhausted and hungry. Ichiro headed back to Amon’s apartment, claiming he had an upset stomach while Amon, Akira, and Takizawa went to go get food. Amon returned in the early morning, exhausted. Ichiro called them both in as they were taking a vacation day. By the time Amon woke, it was almost afternoon. Ichiro had decided to sleep in as well, but couldn’t sleep that late. He sat up in bed and began to text Touka about the CCG’s plans, saying that he was at work and couldn’t call her. When Amon stirred next to him, Ichiro shut off his phone and watched him open his eyes, yawn, and stretch. Ichiro crossed his arms over his bare chest and glared at Amon. </p><p>“Where were you last night?” Amon winced, trying to avoid Ichiro’s glare. He coughed and cleared his throat. </p><p>“It’s not what you think, but I was at Akira’s.” Ichiro glared. </p><p>“What exactly were you doing there, Amon?” Amon sighed. </p><p>“When we were out eating, she drank one beer and was completely drunk. I helped her get home and then I was too worried to leave her alone, so I stayed there until she woke up.” </p><p>Ichiro uncrossed his arms and began to examine his nails. </p><p>“Did you sleep with her?” Color filled Amon’s face, and he sat up. </p><p>“If you’re asking if we had sex, no, absolutely not. I didn’t sleep in her bed. As I said, I stayed up to make sure she would be ok.”  </p><p>Ichiro nodded and relaxed. Amon scooted close to him and pulled him down, hugging him. They lay face to face for a while, just looking at each other. Ichiro finally closed the distance, placing a chaste kiss on Amon’s lips. Amon kissed him back, and they began to make out. Ichiro positioned himself over Amon, straddling him. He leaned down, stabilizing himself with his elbows on either side of Amon’s head, and kissed down Amon’s neck. Amon let out a small moan as Ichiro gently bit down on his neck and sucked. Hickeys wouldn’t last on Ichiro, but they would stay for quite a while on Amon. Ichiro grinded against Amon’s crotch and Amon gasped. </p><p>“Wait…” Ichiro paused. Amon was breathing heavily. “You always do something for me… let me do something for you.” Ichiro was surprised, but he nodded. </p><p>“Whatever you want.” Amon grinned devilishly at him, and Ichiro wondered if he’d regret that statement. Amon flipped them, gave Ichiro a quick kiss, then disappeared under the blankets. </p><p>When they were done, they were both sweaty and shaking. Ichiro let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. </p><p>“Damn Amon… didn’t know you could do that.” Amon only smiled at him and kissed him, his lips salty. </p><p>Ichiro stayed in bed as Amon showered and made himself breakfast. When he was done in the bathroom, Ichiro took a quick shower and then sat next to Amon on the couch, watching Amon eat. His stomach rumbled, and Ichiro tried to remember the last time he’d eaten. Maybe a few weeks ago? Amon looked at him quizzically and Ichiro waved a hand in dismissal. </p><p>“I need to eat soon, but I’m not starving. I’ll figure it out.” Amon finished the last of his cereal and swallowed, setting the bowl down on the coffee table. He took a sip of coffee and then kissed Ichiro. Ichiro appreciated his actions, Amon had made sure Icihro would taste the food he just ate. Ichiro leaned contentedly against Amon. Amon adjusted him so Ichiro’s head rested in his lap. Ichiro watched Amon as the other man played with Ichiro’s hair, braiding it into little braids and then combing it out with his fingers. Ichiro closed his eyes, relaxing. He didn’t want this moment to end. </p><p>“Hey, Ichiro?” Amon asked. </p><p>“Mhm?” Ichiro responded, not opening his eyes. Amon shifted under him. </p><p>“What if you eat at home today?” Ichiro’s eyes flew open, and he sat up. </p><p>“Don’t make fun. I might just take you up on that offer.” </p><p>“I-I wasn’t making fun. I’m completely serious.” Ichiro stared at him. </p><p>“Why? It’d hurt you like hell and as I said before, I’m not starving.” Amon rubbed the back of his neck, face flushing.</p><p>“Well… I’d been reading up on ghoul customs, and I was thinking…” He trailed off, looking at Ichiro. Ichiro couldn’t process what Amon was implying. Then it hit him, and he stood. </p><p>“Are you proposing to me while we’re in your living room, both in our underwear?” The blush on Amon’s face spread down his neck. </p><p>“Maybe… but only if you say yes. If not, I was just kidding and we can just forget this.” Ichiro looked Amon up and down. So much was at risk and getting engaged to an investigator had not been in his plans when he was twelve. He considered the time he’d spent with Amon and came to a decision. He sat back down and turned to Amon.</p><p>“Where do you want me to bite?” Relief filled Amon’s face, quickly replaced by apprehension. Ichiro considered where it would be the least painful and wouldn’t get in the way of everyday life, while still having enough flesh to sate his hunger. He ran his hands up and down Amon’s body. Anything below the waist would make it difficult for him to walk. Amon’s chest was too muscled and he already had a wound healing there. Ichiro vaguely remembered a story TOuka had told him about Nishiki and his human girlfriend, Kimi. Ichiro’s eyes focused on the soft flesh where Amon’s shoulder and neck met. </p><p>“Which arm do you use Dojima with?” Ichiro asked. </p><p>“My right, but where are you thinking?” </p><p>“Do you trust me?” Ichiro asked, activating his kakugan, eyes changing color. Amon looked him over, then nodded. Ichiro leaned forward and bit down on Amon’s neck. Amon let out a grunt of pain, but he pulled Ichiro onto his lap, holding him tight against his body. Ichiro finished the bite, swallowing the hunk of flesh he’d taken from Amon’s neck. He licked the blood off of Amon’s neck and held him, letting the blood clot. When it had stopped bleeding, Ichiro got off of Amon and retrieved the first aid kit, cleaning and bandaging his wound. The bite was low enough that it could be hidden with the CCG battle armor, and Ichiro was sure he hadn’t ruined anything important in Amon’s neck. Dried blood caked his chest, but his hunger was sated for now. </p><p>“How do you feel?” He asked Amon. </p><p>“A little dizzy, but I’ve had worse. Now it’s my turn.”</p><p>“Excuse me?” </p><p>“I get to bite you back.” Amon smiled innocently.  </p><p>“Fine.” Ichiro sighed. “Where do you want to?” Amon bit down in the same area where Ichiro had bitten him. His human teeth didn’t do much damage, but Ichiro knew the bruise would last at least an hour. They resumed their original positions, Amon braiding Ichiro’s hair while Ichiro lay on his lap, content. </p><p>On the day of the raid, Ichiro was jumpy. He wasn’t part of the teams at all, as he wasn’t even supposed to know about the raid. His job did not entail fighting, only doing a psych analysis. He was “too valuable” to be thrown away. And yet, the CCG sent their best warriors. Weren’t they valuable? He didn’t even have to be at work that day, as the higher-ups were worried once the fighting started that the headquarters would be attacked in retaliation. Unsure of what to do with his anxious energy, he threw his knives at a dartboard in the training room. It seemed he wasn’t the only one who was anxious, as Akira practiced with her whip-like quinque behind him. Ichiro thought of Anteiku’s plan to stay and fight, and he shook his head in disgust. They would all be killed. At least Hinami and Touka were not allowed to join in. He heard the training room door open and flinched when a hand rested on his shoulder. He almost stabbed Amon as he turned, a question in his eyes.</p><p>“It’s time,” Amon said. Akira turned to look at him then nodded, leaving the two of them alone. Ichiro ran his finger around the white bandage that peeked out of Amon’s shirt collar and sighed, collapsing into Amon’s arms. </p><p>“If you die, I’ll kill you. Please don’t die.” Ichiro said into Amon’s chest. </p><p>“I won’t. I promise.” They kissed. Amon held Ichiro at arm’s length as if trying to absorb exactly what he looked like. They went to the armory, holding hands. Ichiro glared at anyone that so much as glanced at them. When they got to the armory, Ichiro helped Amon put on his battle armor. They headed back down the hallway to where everyone who would fight congregated. Ichiro kissed Amon one last time, then was forced to leave when Marude began to speak. He stared at Amon’s smiling face as he left the building, running back to his apartment. He’d already decided he couldn’t just sit and wait at Amon’s apartment and began to run to his apartment. Vulture would make an appearance tonight if necessary. </p><p> </p><p>---------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro watched from the rooftops as the battle began. Already, it was not going well for either side. While Kaya and Komo were putting up a strong fight against the agents assigned to kill them, Ichiro knew it wouldn’t last. Ichiro grimaced as Kaya was hit for defending a civilian. As she fell, something caught Ichiro’s eye. Kaneki had arrived, without Aogiri tree. Had he finally left them? Ichiro watched with amazement as Kaneki saved Kaya and escaped the investigators. He certainly was good at fighting. Kaneki disappeared, and Ichiro followed him, jumping across a rooftop. He stopped when he saw Yoshimura. The old man had revealed himself, fully in owl form. A small group of investigators surrounded him, but it seemed hopeless for them. With a shock, Ichiro recognized Juuzou and Shinohara as part of the group. What were they thinking? Juuzou’s scream cut through the air, and Ichiro was snapped back to reality. Ichiro watched, horrified, as Juuzou cut down Yoshimura. Then Eto appeared. Ichiro feared even being fifty feet away from her. She was too smart for her own good, and he suspected she had been the one to tip off the CCG. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro remembered that he’d been following Kaneki, and sniffed the air in an attempt to find him. The streets smelled heavily of human blood, but Ichiro was just able to make out Kaneki’s trail. He followed it, and found two familiar figures fighting. Ichiro cursed himself for not arriving sooner, and jumped off of the roof in an attempt to help Amon, but it was too late. Kaneki had struck the final blow. Amon fell, Dojima dropping out of his grasp and rolling across the ground. Ichiro dodged the deadly weapon and caught Amon as he fell. Blood splattered Ichiro’s mask as Amon coughed. Ichiro held him in an upright position, supporting his back. His hands trembled, wiping the blood off of Amon’s face with his sleeve. Ichiro began to cry. </p><p> </p><p>“You can’t die, I said I’d kill you. Stay with me, stay with me Amon.” </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro repeated this mantra over and over again. This was all his fault. If he hadn’t gotten so distracted by the other fight, he would have made it here in time to help. The only satisfaction he had was that Kaneki didn’t seem to be in good condition either. He turned his full attention to Amon, and cradled him to his chest. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re gonna be ok, you’re gonna be ok, it’s going to be ok, everything is going to be o-”</p><p> </p><p>“I-chiro.” The voice was so faint Ichiro could have imagined it. He searched Amon’s face for anything, any sign that he was ok. Ichiro tore his mask off so Amon could see it was him. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m here, Amon. Tell me how to help you.” Amon reached out his hand, cupping Ichiro’s face. </p><p> </p><p>“Love.. you.” </p><p> </p><p>“I love you too, but we still have things we need to do. Stay with me…” Ichiro trailed off. Amon’s eyes stared into the sky, empty. He was gone. Ichiro trembled, not sure what to do. He tried to close Amon’s eyes, but his hand was too shaky. A glint of metal caught Ichiro’s eyes and Ichiro gently unclasped The cross necklace Amon always wore. It was covered in blood, but he managed to clasp it around his own neck. He gently laid Amon down, finally managing to close his eyes. Ichiro stood, wobbling as footsteps echoed on the stone behind him. He dived for his mask and put it on, turning. Akira stood before him, face bloodied but otherwise unharmed. She dropped her whip in shock, and started for Amon, stopping when she saw Ichiro. </p><p> </p><p>“Vulture..” She growled. Ichiro turned and ran. He didn’t want to fight with her, he just wanted to find Kaneki and kill him. He disappeared down the street, passing Touka. She tried to grab him, but he shoved her away. Ichiro climbed onto the roof of an apartment complex and tripped. He hit the ground so hard he blacked out. </p><p> </p><p>When he opened his eyes, he could smell smoke in the air. He stood shakily, and began to make his way to the fire. He spotted Kaneki from above, carrying a body. Was that the kid who’s just started working for the CCG, running messages? Why was he here, and why was Kaneki so gentle with his body?  Arima appeared, and Kaneki set down the body he was carrying. Someone pointed to the rooftop Ichiro was on and shouted. He ran. </p><p> </p><p>His apartment was too close for comfort to Antieku, but he slipped in through his window when he was sure no one was watching. He changed out of his clothes and mask, hiding them under a loose floorboard below his bed. Collapsing naked on the bed, Ichiro fell into a fitful sleep. </p><p> </p><p>A familiar warmth next to him reassured Ichiro as he woke. Convinced last night had been just a horrible dream, he pulled the man next to him closer. It didn’t feel like Amon. Ichiro opened his eyes, blinking trying to adjust to the dark. A surprised Ayato stared down at him. Ichiro was hugging his waist while Ayato sat on the edge of the edge of Ichiro’s bed. Ichiro pushed him off the bed and Ayato hit the ground with a thump. Ichiro pulled the sheets and blankets around himself, aware of how naked he was, and threw a pillow at Ayato, hitting him square in the face right as he sat up. Ayato groaned and hit the floor again. Ichiro glared down at him. </p><p> </p><p>“What the hell are you doing here?” Ayato grimaced, raising his hands to block another attack. He picked up the fallen pillow and cautiously set it down on the bed in its rightful place. </p><p> </p><p>“I wanted to check on you. You didn’t seem to be in the best condition last night.” The memories of what had happened hit Ichiro, and he slumped down. It hadn’t been a dream. </p><p> </p><p>“You’re a pervert.” He told Ayato. Ayato shrugged in response. </p><p> </p><p>“Nothing I haven’t seen before.” Ichiro raised the pillow again, and Ayato raised his hands in a placating gesture. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro slipped out of bed and with unsteady legs walked to and opened his closet. He could feel Ayato’s eyes on his back, but he ignored the other man. Like Ayato had said, it was nothing he hadn’t seen before. Ichiro got dressed shakily and went into the bathroom connected to his bedroom to wash his face. When he returned to his room, Ayato still sat on his bed, scrolling through his phone. Ichiro cleared his throat and Ayato looked up. </p><p> </p><p>“You can leave now.” Ayato shrugged and without a response, left through the window. Ichiro shook his head in disgust, closing and locking all the windows he could find, not that it would stop a ghoul. Taking a deep breath, Ichiro left his apartment, locking the door behind him. He maneuvered his way through the ruined street, called a taxi, and left for CCG headquarters. Ichiro reminded himself that he wasn’t supposed to know if Amon was dead or alive, and he steeled himself for the conversations he’d have. </p><p> </p><p>The lobby was quiet and subdued, lacking its normal hurried energy. As he stepped through the Rc gates, (which he did daily), Ichiro marveled at how he still remained undetected. No matter how many times he walked through them, they wouldn’t go off. After signing in for the day, the receptionist told him that he should speak to Marude if someone who was in the raid last night had not returned home so he could check if they were listed among the dead. Ichiro nodded and thanked her, making his way to Marude’s office. The door was open, and a sleep-deprived Akira stood in front of the desk, holding a clipboard. As soon as she saw Ichiro, her eyes darkened, flashing with something that might have been pity before she controlled her emotions. </p><p> </p><p>“Who are you here for?” She asked, lifting her clipboard to eye level. </p><p> </p><p>“You know damn well.” Ichiro snapped, snatching the clipboard from her hands. He ran down the list of the survivors, and was relieved to see Juuzou’s name listed. Any joy he felt then drained as he read the list of the dead, landing on the name Koutarou Amon. </p><p> </p><p>“Fuck!” He swore, dropping the clipboard. Akira’s gaze softened, and she reached out to pat his shoulder, awkwardly. </p><p> </p><p>“Did you see it happen?” Ichiro asked, keeping up the story that he had no idea what had happened. Akira sighed and gestured for him to sit down in one of the chairs facing the desk. She closed the office door and sat next to him. </p><p> </p><p>“I was sent there to assist but when I arrived the fight had already gone badly. He’s been fighting Eyepatch and damn near killed him, but whatever luck he had ran out. Eyepatch ran off after striking him, but...”</p><p> </p><p>She trailed off, glancing at Ichiro. </p><p>“But what?” Ichiro asked. He was interested to see how she had interpreted the situation. She shook her head before resuming her story. </p><p> </p><p>“By the time I got there, Eyepatch was gone, but he know he did it. From what he said- Never mind. When I got there, Amon was dead, Eyepatch gone, and this ghoul, who I think was Vulture, was standing over him. I think he just wanted a quick meal.” She said bitterly. </p><p> </p><p>“And then?” </p><p> </p><p>“He ran away when he saw me. By the time I got to Amon and brought him to Kanou, he was too far gone. Kanou pronounced him dead early this morning.” Akira looked at Ichiro curiously. </p><p> </p><p>“Did he give you his cross necklace? He didn’t have it when I got to him, and he always has that thing with him. I’d hate to know that he lost it.” Ichiro swallowed nervously. </p><p> </p><p>“Yeah,” He said, toying with the chain around his neck, “Right before everyone left to fight.” </p><p> </p><p>Akira nodded sadly then stood, offering Ichiro her hand. He took it and stood, leaving the office, unsure of what to do or where to go next. He was completely and utterly lost.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>edit 7/28/20- combined chapters 13- 16</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. RE:</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It had become a daily event for Ichiro to wake up and see Ayato watching over him. The younger man often shook him awake when Ichiro had nightmares, and while Ichiro still had a grudge against him, he was becoming used to Ayato’s presence. Whenever Ichiro saw Ayato, it brought painful memories to the surface that he tried to bury with recent, happy ones. Like that one time when Ayato had made him coffee and gotten him breakfast from Touka’s new shop, RE: Ichiro acknowledged that Ayato was trying his best, but he couldn’t forget the blood and the screams of his family that night. While it wasn’t necessarily his fault, Ichiro blamed him for what Tatara had done to them when Ichiro left Aogiri. Today Ichiro woke up alone, surprised when Ayato was not there. It made him uneasy. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro no longer worked in the field, spending most of his time advising new investigators on how to best approach a ghoul they were hunting down. He spent the rest of his day working with Akira to oversee the Quinx squad. Of course, Arima was in charge, but the higher-ups had concluded that a behavior analysis of Kaneki- now Haise, was necessary. Ichiro joined the squad under the pretense of creating a better analysis of Torso and had been glad to preoccupy his thoughts and body with something that let him see Juuzou more. After his promotion, Juuzou barely had time to do much, and Ichiro began to sneak him snacks during the long, monotonous meetings the CCG frequently had. Right now they were discussing Haise’s outburst after his fight with Takizawa and his insistence to take Hinami into custody rather than kill her on the spot. Ichiro felt sick as he thought about Takizawa’s fate, forced to become what he hated. It had driven him mad. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro’s gaze drifted across the room and landed on Akira. Despite her anti-ghoul sentiment, she was arguing for the continuation of the squad and to keep Hinami alive with Haise as the mentor to the squad. Ichiro assumed she would have hated Haise for killing Amon, but if she did she masked her hatred well. The meeting was dismissed, and Ichiro returned to the Quinx squad’s quarters to tell them the news. Haise and Akira accompanied him, but Akira had to run off to help a group of new investigators train. Ichiro and Haise walked intense silence, Ichiro refusing to acknowledge Haise. That was as far as he could go right now in forgiving Haise. When the plan had been originally proposed and Ichiro had seen Haise, Akira had to pull him away before Ichiro strangled him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What did I do to you before I joined the CCG?” Haise asked, catching Ichiro by surprise. </span>
</p><p>
  <span> “What makes you think you did anything?” Ichiro responded, gritting his teeth. Haise stopped walking and turned to face him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You refuse to look at me, glare at me whenever you do, and act as if I’ve personally wronged you. I can’t remember what I’ve done, but I know it must have been horrible. I-” He paused as if considering his next words. “I have some memories returning to me, but nothing is clear, only snippets of fights. When I was reading about the Owl Suppression raid, I saw an investigator had been killed away from the fight. I asked Akira and she said that a man named Koutarou Amon was killed by a ghoul. Did I do that?” Ichiro considered this, weighing the outcomes of his response. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.” He said and started walking again, fists clenched. Haise rushed to keep up with him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Was he your friend?” Ichiro laughed darkly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You could say that.” Haise stopped in front of Ichiro, blocking his way. Ichiro glared at him, but he could feel tears welling up in his eyes. He clenched his fists harder, his nails digging into his palms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” Haise said. “I really, truly, am.” Ichiro nodded, motioning for Haise to continue. He feared that if he spoke, he would be overwhelmed by emotion and break down in front of Haise. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yonebayashi was awake which was a rare occurrence. She sat in the common room on a fluffy brown couch, entranced by the video game she was playing. As usual, Urie was nowhere to be found, Tooru looked content enough seated next to Yonabyashi, but Ichiro could never be sure with the young investigator. Shirazu looked up nervously as Haise entered the room, followed by Ichiro. Everyone looked expectantly at Ichiro, who cleared his throat and said;</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re all fine. You’ll stay as the Quinx squad and continue your investigative work alongside your mentor, Haise.” Yonebayashi and Shirazu cheered, and Tooru smiled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I forgot to mention,” Ichiro said, and they all fell silent. “Congratulations on your promotions.” They thanked him before Haise suggested;</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t you stay for dinner, Ichiro? We’re making food and having a few other investigators over and it would be lovely if you joined us.” Ichiro inclined his head in thanks, mind racing. He could not stay and eat with them, but it would draw suspicion if he declined their offer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you for your invitation, but I have plans tonight.” His voice tightened as he spoke. “I must visit the cemetery today and pay my respects.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everyone looked uncomfortable at his statement. They must have known about his situation from the gossip around the CCG. Haise smiled, but it was forced. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re welcome to join us if you change your mind.” Ichiro thanked them all again and left the room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Paranoid, Ichiro made his way to the cemetery as he said he would, worried someone would follow him. He sat next to Amon’s CCG sanctioned tombstone and sighed. Something about the grave always felt off, as if something important was missing. It was a much different feeling than the one Ichiro always got when he visited his family's plot. Ichiro began to cry, emotions welling up to form a tight fist around his heart, slowly but surely killing him from the inside out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro considered the Quinque knives he had with him and opened the wallet, transforming the weapon. Placing a knife against his throat, Ichiro considered the consequences of what he was about to do. He didn’t think Akira would care, and neither would Haise. Touka likely wouldn’t know and if she did she could cope with it. Ichiro considered Ayato and the odd relationship they had begun to cultivate. He laughed quietly, reminding himself that they had both sworn to kill one another at one point. Ayato likely wouldn’t even notice, and Ichiro began to think that it was on purpose that Ayato had shown up every night but this one. Why now, and without any warning, if not to unsettle Ichiro? If that was his plan, it had worked. One last person came to Ichiro’s mind, and he sighed in defeat, knowing he couldn't do something so horrible to Juuzou. Juuzou, who was being prepped to be the CCG’s next Arima while his mentor was still in a coma, constantly fighting for his life or already gone. Ichiro relaxed his grip on the knife and thought about how much of a fool he was when a shout behind him made him jump. The razor-sharp blade cut deep into Ichiro's throat, and a searing pain spread across his body. He dropped the knife, slumping down in time to be caught by Ayato, who had shouted his name. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The younger man pulled Ichiro’s trenchcoat off of his shoulders, pressing the fabric against the cut. This only intensified the pain, and Ichiro thrashed helplessly. Warmth began to spread across his chest and down his torso. The world dimmed and Ichiro lost consciousness. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro woke, choking on blood. Thankfully, it was not his own and tasted distinctly human. Ayato glared down at him, a black thermos in his hand. The smell of warm blood wafted through the air, coming from the thermos. Ichiro gasped, gulping in the fresh air. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the darkness and the stone walls surrounding him. He recognized the place. He was in Ayato’s bed, in Aogiri headquarters. He tried to sit up, but a searing pain rushed through his body, emanating from his stomach. He reached up to touch his neck, and only felt a thin, jagged line where the knife had cut. Why did his stomach hurt so much? He voiced the question to Ayato, who answered grimly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tatara wanted payback. I had to bring you here or you’d die, but he seemed to think it would be an entertaining gamble to add another injury.” He paused, then anger filled his voice. “What the hell were you thinking, pulling some idiotic stunt like that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wasn’t going to do it,” Ichiro muttered. “You scared me, yelling my name in a silent cemetery.” They both glared at each other, neither backing down. Finally, Ayato sighed and broke his gaze. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How’d we end up like this, Ichiro? I thought- I thought life would be different now.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tatara killed my family, that’s what happened. If it wasn't for him…” He trailed off, thinking. “It probably wouldn’t have lasted anyway. Together, we’re too angry and headstrong.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> Ayato nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just hoped…”  Ayato shook his head and sighed, covering his face with his hands. Ichiro gently reached up and held his wrists, forcing Ayato to look at him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can we pretend? Just for a few moments. Can we pretend as if it’s like old times again?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro’s voice caught on the last word, but Ayato seemed to understand. Ayato gently got into bed, kicking off his boots and laying next to Ichiro. Normally, Ichiro would be the one to hold Ayato, but because of his stomach wound, Ayato held him close to his chest. They lay like that for more than a few moments, maybe hours. It was hard to tell. Ayato gently let go of Ichiro,  but Ichiro grabbed at him again. He craved the contact of skin on skin, lips on lips. Ayato seemed to understand his unspoken plea and turned so they were facing each other. He kissed Ichiro, but all Ichiro could think of is how different it felt than when Amon kissed him. Ichiro responded hungrily, pushing himself against Ayato. Ayato palmed Ichiro’s crotch and heat rushed to the area. Ichiro gasped, wanting more. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His stomach wound twinged horribly, and he cried out in pain. Ayato froze. Ichiro tried to kiss Ayato again, but Ayato only allowed small kisses, pulling away when it became too intense. Ichiro soon tired, and Ayato cradled him in his arms again, pulling him close. The room faded into black as Ichiro fell asleep. It would have been perfect if not for the hole in his heart that Amon’s death had torn, slowly growing until it would consume him entirely. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro woke in a blaze of pain and hunger. His wound had healed considerably, but he needed food if it was to continue. He blinked, trying to dismiss the slight tint of red his vision gained when his eyes changed color. Ayato stood with his back to Ichiro, dressing in his usual black clothing. Ichiro continued to examine the room and spotted a pitcher of blood on the bedside table. He sat and scooted towards it, draining it quickly. As he wiped the blood from his mouth he glanced up to see Ayato watching him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Feeling any better?” Ayato asked. Ichiro nodded, trying to sort through his hazy memories of when he was last awake. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long have I been out?” He asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Three days.” Ichiro gasped in shock. Three days? Surely he couldn’t have slept that long. His thoughts drifted again to him and Ayato. Nausea tilted his vision and his ears pounded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look, Ayato,” he said, nervously swallowing. “I need to apologize for what I did. It was irresponsible and I should have known better. I wasn’t in my right mind and I shouldn’t have brought up old memories. I’m not in the right headspace to consider sex, let alone a relationship.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ayato’s back stiffened, and he was silent for a long time. Finally, he said:</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I understand. I’m sorry if I took things out of hand.” Satisfied with his response, Ichiro let his mind wander. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do the CCG think?” He asked, realizing his absence would be noticed. Ayato laughed at this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They think you’re dead. Either by suicide- then your corpse being eaten by a ghoul, or you fought a ghoul and lost. With your knives left behind along with your coat and all that blood, there’s no other conclusion they can come to. They’ve been talking about your death on the news.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ichiro’s shoulders slumped. He’d hoped that he'd have been classified as missing, not dead. It would be much harder to explain things now. He shakily stood and hobbled to Ayato, who pulled Ichiro’s arm over his shoulders, supporting him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need a breath of fresh air- and a meal. Could we leave?” Ichiro asked. Ayato agreed, and together they made their way outside, ready to hunt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>---------------------------------------</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pain. That was the only sensation Koutarou Amon knew. He regained consciousness, gasping for air as he sat up. He was sitting on a small threadbare cot. The walls around him were white and polished, with no windows. The only exit was a small door with no handle and a small, plastic window he could look through. A spike of pain shot through his body and he cried out, collapsing down onto the cot. Was this a jail cell? Amon looked down at himself and almost passed out. His arm was a twisted, mangled, mess, and glowed with a reddish light. It almost looked like- no, it couldn’t be. As he stared at his arm for longer, he was forced to accept the facts. His arm was a kagune, making him a ghoul. He didn’t know how this was possible, but he couldn’t deny it. Fear filled him, drowning him in emotion. He began to choke, unable to breathe until finally- </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon shot out of bed. A familiar room surrounded him, calming his nerves. Sweat beaded on his forehead and he panted as if he had been strangled in real life. His arm pulsed and he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. It had taken some time to get used to and eventually control the kagune that was now his right arm. It currently looked like normal human flesh, save for his hand. He was missing his middle and ring finger, leaving him with only three. Amon cursed his luck, still disgusted by his deformity.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rolling to his side and getting out of bed, Amon made his way into the living room. It was painful living in his old apartment, but he suspected Ichiro was still paying for it as no one had moved in. It appeared that like Amon, Ichiro couldn’t let go of any hope that life would go back to as it had been. As he did every morning, Amon looked through the few photos he and Ichiro had taken together on his phone. Some of his favorites were: Ichiro, his hair messy sitting next to Amon in bed, his chest bare as he glared at the camera. Another of Ichiro, his head resting on Amon’s lap with his hair braided and eyes closed, fast asleep. His expression was content and didn’t hold any visible stress, which was a rare occurrence. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As he looked through the photos, guilt washed over Amon that he had not tried harder to find Ichiro. He hadn’t been in his apartment the times Amon had looked for him, nor was he walking his normal route to work that he took every morning. A reminder of the unfamiliar smell of another person, likely a ghoul in Ichiro’s apartment bothered Amon, though every time it came up in his thoughts he had to remind himself that Ichiro must have thought he was dead and that it would make sense if he had decided to date (or fuck), other men. Jealousy filled Amon, and he decided to distract himself by turning on the TV he so rarely used. When he finally got it to work, he sat down on the couch and drowned his thoughts in the mindless entertainment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A news broadcast pulled him out of his stupor, as he heard Ichiro’s full name spoken by an unfamiliar news anchor. Amon’s eyes widened as the man continued to speak, describing the grisly scene of the crime where an investigator was attacked and tragically defeated by ghouls. Panic crawled its way through Amon’s chest and he stood, staring at the news report. He began to calm when the detail that Ichiro's body had not been found was mentioned. Amon knew there was no way that Ichiro could have been defeated by a ghoul below an S rating at the least. Ghouls who frequented cemeteries for food were often weak and non-confrontational, especially to an investigator. Amon sat back down at the couch, thinking about how best to find Ichiro.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Eventually, when he had made a simple plan, Amon got dressed and left the apartment. He would investigate the scene of the so-called crime and decide for himself what the truth was. Amon didn’t think he could bear the knowledge that Ichiro had been killed while visiting his grave. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Amon reached the cemetery, he had to hide. A small group of investigators was clustered around right where he wanted to look. He watched as they searched the scene, clearly having done so before. That meant that they must not be so convinced Ichiro was dead as they had been claiming. With a jolt of shock, Amon recognized Akira and- was that Eyepatch? Confused, Amon dug through his memories, remembering that Kanou had mentioned something about a “Quinx” squad led by a ghoul with amnesia. It seemed Eyepatch was that very ghoul. The group looked tired and upset, though Amon couldn't be sure why. Had Ichiro worked with them? Eventually, Akira waved her hand and called off the search. The group trudged out of the cemetery, depressed by their lack of discovery. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he was sure they were gone, Amon looked at the scene for himself. He recognized Ichiro’s scent almost immediately, which he found puzzling. He had never been around Ichiro when he was a ghoul. Dismissing the thought, Amon looked at the base of the grave. Dried blood coated the ground. It was definitely Ichiro’s. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No wonder they assume he’s dead,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Amon thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>If he had been human, losing that much blood surely would have killed him. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon recognized another smell, the same unfamiliar ghoul he had smelled before in Ichiro’s apartment. There were indentations in the grass as if someone had slid across the ground, fast. Amon followed these lines until they stopped, switching to rely on his sense of smell to guide him. He was sure of one thing: Ichiro had not died at the cemetery. He had either left or had been taken with the other ghoul, as their scent mixed together and followed a path only a ghoul could take. As Amon followed the trail, leaping onto a rooftop, he recognized a newer trail that intersected with the old. Changing directions, Amon began to follow this one, making sure to not be seen on the ground. It was getting dark, but not dark enough for him to have been concealed. As he followed the path, running now, he heard a familiar voice and recognized his surroundings. He was in the neighborhood where the Owl Raid had been, meaning he was near Ichiro’s apartment. Peering over the rooftop to find the source of the voice, Amon spotted Ichiro. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He leaned against a telephone pole, and it was clear he was exhausted. Ichiro tapped his fingers together the way he did when he was stressed or anxious, but his expression was cool and controlled. A figure exited the coffee shop Ichiro stood across from and joined him. Amon stiffened, recognizing the smell of the unfamiliar ghoul. The mysterious ghoul held a paper bag in one hand and offered the other to Ichiro. Ichiro limped towards him and almost fell, but the purple-haired ghoul caught him, steadying Ichiro against his body. Amon watched in disgust and jealousy as Ichiro leaned into his touch, throwing an arm around the other man’s shoulder to support himself. The pair walked to Ichiro’s apartment and entered the building. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Amon froze, unsure if he wanted to see more. It seemed that Ichiro had moved on. Amon tried to remind himself that he likely would have done the same thing if he was in Ichiro’s position, but it didn’t help as much as it normally would. He sank to sit on the edge of the rooftop in despair. Would it even be fair to Ichiro to tell him he was still alive? Unwanted tears ran down Amon’s face as he wondered what to do next. Ichiro had been Amon’s only chance of returning to a semi-normal life again, and now that wasn’t even possible. Amon returned home, not wanting to stay long enough to hear the man he loved fucking someone else.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Discovery</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>hi! if you've been following this story, i apologize if my updates today confused you! i updated the work and combined chapters which i honestly kinda regret lol </p><p>anyhow, i'm very close to finishing this story up, and i was struck with some creativity earlier so i wrote a chapter for one of my planned works! it's an m/m fic with Tatara, and i plan on posting the chapter later today! please go check it out if you're interested in it :)) </p><p>ty all for your support, ur comments give me energy to keep going!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ichiro began living at his apartment part-time and spending the rest of his time at Aogiri. While he didn’t particularly like them or their leaders, he agreed with Eto that ghouls and humans should be united. The only way he could help this goal was by helping Aogiri. Now, he was rushing around to help Aogiri prepare their attack on Cochlea. The group going was small, but it was the best they could do. Ichiro had requested to go, but Tatara had decided that revealing that he was alive and a ghoul to the CCG wouldn’t be wise as they may be able to use him for insider information. Reluctantly, Ichiro had agreed with them. </p><p>Ichiro watched as the team of ghouls left, waving to Ayato. He turned to find Tatara studying him. Squaring his shoulders and lifting his chin, Ichiro met Tatara’s gaze. He couldn't tell what Tatara was thinking, especially with the metal mask he always wore. It was unusual, even in Aogiri to always hide your face. If it had been anyone else, Ichiro would have accused Tatra of being a coward. Unfortunately, Ichiro knew better. Tatara hid the scar Ichiro had given him when they fought years ago. In turn, Tatara had given Ichiro the thin, pale scar that ran down his face and neck. Ichiro had almost died from that wound, but he wore the scar proudly. </p><p>“The doves will be here tonight,” Tatara said. “It would be wise of you to conceal your face.” </p><p>Ichiro inclined his head grudgingly. It would be suicide to oppose Tatara directly. As he turned, Tatara spoke again. </p><p>“There are a few things I must tell you before you join the battle tonight. Come with me.” </p><p>Confused, Ichiro followed him into the stone entrance hall. Tatara stopped at what seemed to be a simple stone wall, but when he pushed against it the stone split, revealing a hidden room. Tatara gestured for Ichiro to follow and nervously, Ichiro did. Was Tatara going to kill him without the protection Ayato gave him? Tatara turned to face him, eyes still unreadable. Suddenly, he spoke. </p><p>“Do you know anything about the organization V?” Ichiro shook his head, utterly confused. Tatara sighed in exhaustion, sitting on the edge of his desk and removing his mask. Ichiro blinked, surprised at the action. </p><p>“They are the organization controlling everything. They have complete control over the CCG and what happens inside. They attempt to create a balance between ghouls and humans, as Eto is trying to. Unlike Eto, they are all weak cowards who refuse to do anything or get anything done. They live in the shadows, shrouded in mystery. Have you ever wondered why you don’t affect the RC cell gates?” </p><p>Ichiro nodded, transfixed by Tatara’s words. </p><p>“I don’t know how to tell you this, Ichiro, but it’s because they control you. They altered the course of your life to serve their own needs. Do you remember what happened right after you found your family dead?” </p><p>Ichiro glared at Tatara but began to think. He came to a disturbing realization. Gritting his teeth, Ichiro spoke.</p><p>“No. I passed out and when I came to, you were there, eating their corpses.” </p><p>Tatara shrugged, unaffected by Ichiro’s anger. </p><p>“Who would deny free food? You assumed I killed them and gave me no chance to explain. V killed them. They needed you inside the CCG to connect with other agents and get them to see ghouls as human when you were finally discovered. Without the death of your family, you wouldn’t have joined to find and kill me. So, they killed your family and input your genetic sequence into the gates. They’ve controlled you for most of your life.”</p><p>Ichiro’s mind raced. Could he believe Tatara? It seemed that he was telling the truth, and Ichiro had no other explanation as to why he didn’t set off the RC gates. </p><p>“Why are you telling me this?” Ichiro asked. </p><p>“Because if I die tonight I need you to help Eto continue what she’s doing. Soon, Arima will die and she may be left alone. Knowing this, you will be motivated to help her when she is freed from Cochlea.” </p><p>Tatara smiled sadly, and for the first time since Ichiro had known him, Ichiro felt pity for him. </p><p>“You care for her, don’t you?” Ichiro asked. Tatara glared at him. </p><p>“I love her like a sister, nothing more. She is the only family I have left even though we are not related by blood.” </p><p>Ichiro considered this. </p><p>“If you didn’t kill my family, then why did you try to kill me when Ayato brought me here?” Tatara’s smile widened, and he looked truly evil at that moment. </p><p>“Simple payback. You gave me a scar and destroyed many of my plans. Plus, it was not the right time to tell you this, and I had to keep up appearances. Now go, before I lose my temper and skewer you.” </p><p>Ichiro left, making his way to the room that was given to him. Ichiro unzipped the duffle bag he brought with him between living spaces and began to change into Vulture’s clothes. After taking off his shirt, something in the air shifted. Ichiro turned but saw no visible change anywhere. It felt as if he was being watched. Glancing at the window, Ichiro saw nothing but the approaching lights of the CCG’s first wave of attack. Cursing, Ichiro removed his pants and pulled on the bodysuit that Vulture wore, finishing the disguise with his two masks. If he was able, Ichiro would have only worn the bird's head mask as it allowed his mouth to be free, but thanks to Tatara he was too recognizable. Ichiro took a deep breath, preparing for battle.</p><p>The sight of Ichiro had disheartened the CCG’s agents, as they tried to avoid engaging with him. He felt small pangs of regret every time he had to kill someone he’d seen around CCG headquarters, but he had to remind himself that they would kill him at any given chance. Ichiro’s confidence wavered as he saw Juuzou and his squad of investigators approaching, knowing he’d have to fight them. Juuzou clapped with delight as he spotted Ichiro, calling out to him. </p><p>“Here, birdy-birdy~” </p><p>Ichiro launched himself at Juuzou, activating his kagune. He slashed with the end of one razor-sharp wing, trying to only injure Juuzou, but Juuzou blocked it easily. Members of his squad stepped forward to intervene, but Juuzou raised a hand and ordered them to stay out of the fight. Then he attacked. </p><p>Ichiro was hard-pressed not to get cut by Juuzou’s slashing blade while also dodging the knives the younger man occasionally threw. Ichiro jumped and spun in the air, narrowly avoiding getting slashed. Unfortunately, the bird’s head mask he wore didn’t seem to like being upside down as it slipped, distracting Ichiro enough for Juuzou to whack him with the flat end of his quinque. The air in Ichiro’s lungs blew out as he was slapped across the grass and into a tree. The tree shook violently and rained leaves, threatening to collapse. Ichiro rolled away just in time, but his mask spun off. With his back to Juuzou, Ichiro tore off the mask on his mouth, leaving his face completely exposed. He figured that his teeth would be a useful weapon now that he couldn’t avoid being recognized. </p><p>“Who are you..? “ Juuozou asked in a sing-song voice.</p><p>Ichiro spun around, the moonlight illuminating the pale scar that ran down his face, along with his red eyes. Juuzou gasped, so shocked that he dropped his quinque. <br/>“It...it can’t be! They said you were dead! That you-” Juuzou sobbed. This was not the reaction Ichiro had expected. Sure, he and the troubled investigator had been friends, but Ichiro had thought Juuzou would be angrier at him, bent on destroying him. The group of investigators around them shifted, unsure of what to do next. Many of them had known Ichiro and no doubt recognized him. </p><p>“Juuzou, what you’re doing is wrong. You know me. This is what needs to happen for this constant battle between ghouls and humans to end. We need to work together.” </p><p>Juuzou trembled but grabbed for his quinque. Using it to steady himself, he pointed a finger and in a shaky voice commanded: </p><p>“Go. Get out of here and pray you don’t meet me. I’ll kill you the next time I see you, I swear!” </p><p>Getting the message, Ichiro ran, dodging the half-hearted attacks of Juuzou’s squad and disappearing into the night. </p><p>The most important fight seemed to be happening in the entrance hall of Aogiri headquarters. Ichiro dashed in that direction, cursing that he hadn’t gotten his mask when Juuzou let him go. While Juuzou and his squad knew that Ichiro was a ghoul, others did not and he could have taken them by surprise. Ichiro sniffed the air when he reached the large stone entrance to Aogiri and identified many smells Akira, Houji, and his group of investigators, Tatara, Takizawa, and another ghoul. The unidentified ghoul smelled odd to Ichiro, and reminded him of something else, though he couldn’t remember what. Then, the overwhelming copper stench of blood overwhelmed all of Ichiro’s senses. Worried someone he cared about was hurt, Ichiro threw himself through the stone archway just in time to see Tatara be impaled. Ichiro gasped in shock, utterly confused. Tatara had been impossible for Ichiro to fight, and who could have killed him? The unidentified ghoul? Watching in horror, Ichiro realized that it had been Takizawa. As Tatara fell, he focused on Ichiro and spoke so quietly Ichiro thought he might have imagined it. </p><p>“E-to.” </p><p>His lifeless body hit the ground with a resounding thump. Blood began to spread across his white coat, dyeing it crimson. Takizawa landed nimbly next to the corpse and kicked it. Ichiro flinched, unsure of who to be angry at. Takizawa had been driven mad by Tatara’s torture, and he had every right to exact revenge on him. Earlier in the day, Ichiro would have even joined him. But now, Ichiro didn’t know what to think. Tatara had humanized himself to Ichiro, and Ichiriro hated him for it. </p><p>Focusing on the situation at hand, Ichiro watched as Takizawa turned to face the small group of investigators, grinning maniacally. </p><p>“See? I helped!” He chuckled with glee, almost skipping to the investigators. As Houji raised his hand and prepared to say the order, Ichiro was sure he would, Ichiro dashed from his hiding place and tackled Takizawa, right as the words left Houji’s lips. </p><p>“We must eliminate him as-” He stopped and froze, along with everyone in the room. Takizawa managed to elbow Ichiro in the face before Ichiro got him under control, pinning his arms behind his back and sitting on his legs. Ichiro spit blood from his mouth and looked up at the group of investigators and smiled. When they stared at him, he shrugged. </p><p>“Tragedy averted.” Houji’s squad raised their quinques, but Akira waved a hand at them, and they stood down. </p><p>“Ichiro?” She asked, incredulously. Ichiro nodded. </p><p>“The one and only.” His grin widened at the expression on her face. </p><p>“B-but you were dead! All that blood and your knives… where have you been?” She exclaimed. </p><p>Takizawa squirmed again, and Ichiro tightened his grip. </p><p>“How are you..?” Akira trailed off, staring at what she thought to be a human holding down a ghoul. </p><p>“He’s a ghoul, dumbass.” Takizawa spat. “Now let me go, you idiot!” Akira’s mouth made a small ‘o’ of realization. She shook her head, in utter shock. Ichiro leaned down towards Takizawa.</p><p>“I can’t let you go, and you know that. Though you have saved them from quite a lot of suffering, the CCG has one way of dealing with ghouls: executing them. You will not find comfort in their arms until they trust you. One act will not complete that trust. They will try to kill you, and you will kill the man you love. Is that what you want?” </p><p>Takizawa stilled, but he muttered a response. </p><p>“I wouldn’t kill Houji.”</p><p>“Yes, you would. You’re unstable at best in this state.” </p><p>Takizawa stopped resisting, and Ichiro loosened his hold for just a moment. It was a mistake. With a roar, Takizawa threw Ichiro off of him and stood before attacking Akira. Ichiro hit the ground and rolled, stunned while Takizawa strangled Akira. Houji’s squad raised their weapons again, but he ordered them to stand down, less they hit Akira. Ichiro watched helplessly in his stupor as Takizawa began to cry, still strangling Akira. Pushing himself to his feet, Ichiro began to run and slammed himself into Takizawa yet again. Takizawa heard him coming and turned, ready. His kagune pierced through Ichiro’s left shoulder, just above his collar bone. Gasping at the onslaught of pain, Ichiro struggled against Takizawa but gained no control. Blood ran down his leather clothes, creating an uncomfortable texture and sensation. Takizawa reached to grab Ichiro, but Ichiro bit down on the hand with all his strength. Takizawa howled, backing away from Ichiro and retracting his kagune. Takizawa raised his kagune again to strike the final blow, but he was stopped. </p><p>A hooded figure stood in front of Ichiro, facing Takizawa. Lightheaded from blood loss, Ichiro drifted in and out of consciousness, only recognizing and processing small snippets of information. He knew that this was the ghoul he’d smelled earlier, that the Quinx squad had entered the room, and that Takizawa had stopped fighting and was now talking to the hooded figure. They seemed to agree, and in unison made their ways to Ichiro and Akira. The strange ghoul lifted Ichiro easily, and Ichiro watched, head lolling to the side as Takizawa gently picked up Akira. A hand caressed Ichiro’s cheek, turning his head to look up at his mysterious savior. Ichiro laughed, convinced the blood loss had gotten to him as he recognized Amon’s face.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Goat</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>there is smut in this at the end. feel free to skip :))</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ichiro woke woozily, vaguely registering that he was in a warm embrace. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, Ichiro was hit with a wave of deja vu. He was in the room he recognized as Amon’s bedroom. He hadn’t been here since Amon died, afraid of the truth he’d have to face: that Amon was dead. Ichiro shivered, but he wasn’t cold. The sensation of strong arms across his bare chest holding him was enticing, and Ichiro wished to see (and fuck) his ghoulish savior. It seemed that he had been undressed while he was unconscious, but Ichiro didn’t mind. It only meant less time to spend taking off his clothes before fucking and subsequently forgetting his troubles. Turning to face the man holding him, Ichiro froze. It couldn’t be… But, he couldn’t deny the sleeping face and body next to him. It was Amon. Ichiro began to shiver violently, panic threatening to crush him. This couldn’t be real. He was sure Amon had died, he had held him and cried as the light left his eyes. How could this be possible? </p><p>His shivering woke Amon, who blinked slowly before focusing sadly on Ichiro’s face. Rubbing the back of his neck and blushing slightly, Amon spoke.</p><p>“Uh… sorry about this. I wanted to leave before you woke up. I saw you with that other ghoul a few days ago and you two looked very close so I didn’t want to ruin anything. I’ll just leave…” </p><p>As he sat up, Ichiro darted at him, tackling and pinning him down. </p><p>“Explain,” Ichiro ordered through gritted teeth. </p><p>Amon bowed his head in what Ichiro thought was defeat, but as soon as Ichiro relaxed his hold on Amon, Amon twisted around, displaying an incredible amount of strength. Amon held Ichiro to his chest, wrapping his arms around him and resting his chin on Ichiro’s shoulder. Then he began to talk. Amon explained his discovery that Kanuou had turned him into a ghoul and his struggle with the knowledge. He talked about how he’d tried to find Ichiro and then saw him with Ayato and left without telling Ichiro he was alive. When Amon finally finished his story, they both sat in silence. Ichiro could feel Amon’s heart pounding nervously against his chest. Slowly and deliberately, Ichiro kissed Amon. It felt like a fresh breath of air after months of staying inside. Amon’s lips parted as he reciprocated Ichiro’s kiss and they soon were out of breath.</p><p>“Don’t ever leave me alone like that again,” Ichiro said. They held each other and cried, constantly making sure the other was real and that they were together. Later in the day when they were cuddling, Amon asked Ichiro a question. </p><p>“So… you and that ghoul aren’t together?” Ichiro laughed and shook his head. </p><p>“No. We have a complicated past at best, but there's nothing to worry about.” Amon nodded, content with the idea. </p><p>“You’re a ghoul now, huh? I wonder if that means you’ll last longer in bed.” Ichiro said. Amon’s face reddened and he swatted at Ichiro. </p><p>“Jerk.” He muttered, but there was no real anger behind it. Amon glared at Ichiro who batted his eyelashes innocently. Eventually, they both burst into laughter. A pillow fight ensued, which Ichiro won by ambushing Amon with a kiss. </p><p> ---------------------------------------</p><p>Later, while they sat together in comfortable silence Amon began to re-bandage Ichiro’s wounds from his fight with Takizawa. Ichiro sat on the floor in front of the couch while Amon sat behind him on the couch. Ichiro stared at the TV while Amon worked, making sure to pay close attention whenever the CCG was mentioned. Ichiro was sure someone would have reported him as alive and a ghoul by now, but it seemed no one had shared. Did they even get the chance to?  Ichiro wondered. A small hiss of breath came out from Ichiro’s clenched teeth as Amon began to work on his shoulder injury. Takizawa had pierced right through his body, leaving a large hole. Amon told Ichiro that it had been worse when they first got to his apartment, as it was now only a gash on Ichiro’s back. </p><p>“What happened to Akira and Houji?” Ichiro asked. Amon sighed before answering. </p><p>“Akira is alive as of now. She’s with the ghouls of Anteiku. I’m not sure if Houji made it out alive, considering no report of your true identity was made.” </p><p>Ichiro nodded sadly. Houji had been a good investigator, and Ichiro had worked with him many times. They both had thought they’d lost someone they cared about in the Owl Operation and it had drawn them together. If Houji was alive, how could he deal with the knowledge that Takizawa was now a ghoul and had practically lost his mind? </p><p>Ichiro’s phone buzzed in his pants pocket, and he answered it with some hesitation. It was Touka. Ichiro listened intently as she explained that Akira was getting better, and Kaneki’s idea and success of Goat. Ichiro liked Kaneki’s plans. They were certainly less extreme than Aogiri’s and therefore harder to accomplish correctly, but they just might work. </p><p>“We’re holding a larger meeting later, which you should come to! There are also some people here that you might want to talk to. And bring Amon if you can, you both will have good inside information on the CCG that will be helpful in trying to deal with them.” </p><p>Ichiro agreed and they ended the phone call. Standing and turning to look at Amon, Ichiro offered him a hand, which Amon took. </p><p>“Did you hear all of that?” Ichiro asked. Amon nodded, eyes bright with excitement. </p><p>“When do we leave?”</p><p> ---------------------------------------</p><p>While Kaneki tried to convince ghouls to join him and Amon went to get Akira something (her cat, Ichiro thought), Ichiro tried to find Takizawa. Touka had told Ichiro that he was here, but Ichiro was having some trouble finding him. Following what he recognized as Takizawa’s scent, Ichiro ended up at a closed door. He knocked twice, loudly, but when there was no answer he kicked it in. Takizawa must have been standing close to the door, as a muffled “oomph” sounded. Blinking to clear his eyes of the dust, Ichiro took in the room. It was practically empty, save for a small bed in the corner. A single window illuminated the otherwise dark room. Takizawa crawled out from under the wreckage of the door and stood, brushing off his black clothing and glaring at Ichiro. </p><p>“You,” Ichiro said, “owe me big time.” Takizawa winced at his raised voice and glanced behind him. </p><p>“Could you keep it down?” He growled. Ichiro craned his neck to see what he originally thought had been an empty bed. A smile spread across his face as he recognized the sleeping man. Takizawa glared at him even more, but Ichiro couldn’t control his laughter. </p><p>“Takizawa, you always surprise me. I take it you finally talked to Houji?” Takizawa nodded, almost guiltily. </p><p>“Then all that you owe me is this.” Lightning fast, Ichiro slapped Takizawa across the face, sending him stumbling back a few feet. One hand pressed to his face, Takizawa managed to lift the door and fit it back into the frame, cursing all the while until he finally managed to slam it in Ichiro’s face. Ichiro turned, unaffected, to see Touka along with a sick-looking Akira watching him. </p><p>“Don’t worry about it,” Ichiro said, and they left it at that. Touka invited Akira and Ichiro to go on a short walk together, which they both accepted. Akira stared at Ichiro until they were outside as if finally seeing him for the first time. Her attention shifted, however, when Touka began to talk to her about how she had been the one to kill Akira’s father. Ichiro dropped back a few paces, giving them some privacy. Hinami handed him a flower shyly before going to talk to Akira. Ichiro watched them hug and let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. This interaction alone gave Ichiro hope that humans and ghouls could live together peacefully soon. Akira turned to him, unshed tears glistening in her eyes before she spoke. </p><p>“We need to talk.” Ichiro inclined his head and followed her to a park bench where they sat in silence. Touka left to see how the meeting was going and it was a while before Akira spoke. Finally, she said: </p><p>“I always thought there was something off about you.” </p><p>Ichiro snorted.</p><p>“You could say that again. What seemed off to you?” </p><p>Akira waved her hands helplessly before answering. <br/>“I don’t know… at first, I just thought it was the weird tension you always had, except for when you were with Amon. I justified this and just assumed you were nervous or socially inept. Then, after Aogiri attacked our headquarters Amon asked me a very strange question about morality and if I thought all ghouls were truly bad. Seeing as how things were going between you two, I thought maybe you knew someone who was a ghoul and didn’t know what to do. I never thought you could have been one, what with the Rc cell gates. How did you trick those, by the way?” </p><p>“I wasn’t sure for a while myself until it was explained to me. It’s very complicated and I don’t want to get into it. All you need to know is that it wasn’t a flaw in the technology and it was programmed to be that way. Also- I’m not sure if you were aware, but I’m Vulture.” </p><p>Akira’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open as she took in the information. </p><p>“Damn,” she murmured. “There's so much I didn’t know.” She paused before speaking suddenly. </p><p>“Do you know Amon’s still alive? And that he’s-” </p><p>“Half ghoul? Yes, I know.” Ichiro cut her off. </p><p>“That’s good.” She cast a sideways glance at Ichiro. “Treat him well, ok? He’s a good guy and I don’t want to see him hurt.” </p><p>Ichiro nodded. </p><p>“Did he deliver your cat already?” He asked. Akira surprised him by throwing her head back and laughing. </p><p>“Yes, he did,” she said between giggles. </p><p>They sat together in comfortable silence until it began to get dark. Then, they parted ways, Ichiro heading back to Amon’s apartment. He hadn’t seen Amon since they initially arrived at the meeting, but Ichiro wasn’t very worried. Unlocking the front door with the key Amon had given him earlier, Ichiro stepped into the room. All the lights were off, save for a faint flickering coming from the bathroom. The door was closed, so Ichiro made his way into the bedroom and changed into his borrowed nightclothes. Leaving the room, Ichiro knocked on the bathroom door. </p><p>“You can come in,” Amon answered. </p><p>Opening the door, Ichiro stared blindly into the room until his eyes adjusted to the darkness from the lights he’d turned on in the bedroom. A few things became suddenly apparent to him; candles lit the room dimly, illuminating the pile of Amon’s clothes near the door, and Amon had been taking a bath. Water sloshed within the tub as Amon sat up. Unsure of how exactly to proceed, Ichiro sat down next to the edge of the bathtub. Ichiro's nervous feelings surprised him. While he hadn’t been in this exact situation before, he’s been in many more explicit scenarios and he hadn’t felt an ounce of the fear he felt now. His relationship with Amon continued to surprise him, different from anything Ichiro had experienced before. </p><p>“Did you plan this?” Ichiro asked Amon teasingly. Amon rubbed the back of the neck, a habit Ichiro had noticed he did when he was nervous or flustered. </p><p>“Not… entirely.” When Ichiro stayed by the side of the tub, Amon reached out and tugged on the edge of his shirt. </p><p>“Why don’t you join me?” He asked, and even in the dim light, Ichiro could tell he was blushing. </p><p>“Since you asked so nicely…” Ichiro stood and pulled off his shirt, and soon his pants and underwear followed. Amon watched him intently, but Ichiro didn’t feel uncomfortable. Bracing himself with one hand against the wall, Ichiro settled into the water. It was still warm and felt good on his sore muscles. Sitting down across from Amon, Ichiro narrowly avoided hitting his back on the faucet. Pulling his knees up to his chest, Ichiro sat and watched Amon, unsure if he wanted to fuck or just relax together. When Amon gently grabbed Ichiro’s wrists and pulled him forward so Ichiro was straddling the other man, Ichiro guessed his plans. Ichiro pressed his body against Amon’s, relishing the feeling of skin on skin. Almost sitting up, Amon braced his elbows on the side of the tub and placed his hands on Ichiro’s waist. Ichiro leaned down to kiss him, and parted his lips, allowing Amon into his mouth. The kiss soon grew hungry and full of passion. Ichiro could feel Amon’s cock getting hard, pressed between his legs. Tentatively, Amon reached down and stroked Ichiro’s cock with his thumb, running his finger down the shaft. Ichiro shivered with delight and moaned into Amon’s mouth. They broke apart for a second, water sloshing around as Amon reached to grab the waiting condom. Ichiro watched in anticipation as Amon unwrapped the condom. Moving off of Amon so he could put the condom on, Ichiro assessed how ready he was to be fucked. </p><p>Over the years, he’d learned that an advantage to have anal sex as a ghoul was that he rarely had to prepare himself as he only ate flesh once a week. Because of this, ghouls only had to shit the one time, saving them from about an hour of preparation to make sure the situation didn’t get gross. Ichiro concluded that he would be ready just as Amon finished rolling the condom down his considerable length. </p><p>“You ready?” Amon asked. Ichiro nodded, leaning forward and reaching over Amon to grab the waterproof lube they kept in the bathroom. Presenting the lube to Amon, Ichiro watched as Amon squeezed it onto his middle and pointer finger. Skin tingling in excitement, Ichiro asked: </p><p>“How do you want to do this?” </p><p>Amon pushed himself up so his cock was right under Ichiro. </p><p>“You ok without any preparation to um… ride me?” </p><p>“Yes,” Ichiro said, placing his arms on the sides of the tub. </p><p>“If you say so,” Amon said, grinning as he reached behind Ichiro and stroked his entrance, spreading the lube that was on his fingers. Ichiro let out an involuntary sigh as Amon’s fingers penetrated him, making sure he would be ready to take in his cock. When Amon was convinced Ichiro was ready, he placed his hands on Ichiro’s hips and slowly helped lower him down onto his cock. Pleasure racked Ichiro’s body and he took a deep breath in, trying not to moan. Then Amon thrust inside of him. A mix of pain and pleasure filled Ichiro and he bit his lip so hard blood trickled down his chin, splashing into the water below. Ichiro rode Amon, and soon they both were moaning. </p><p>“Does this.. feel good… for you?” Amon asked between clenched teeth, </p><p>“Oh god, oh fuck yes,” Ichiro moaned, close to his breaking point. Amon seemed to recognize this and removed a hand from Ichiro’s waist. With that hand, he stroked the head of Ichiro’s cock. Soon, he was giving him a handjob. Amon came first after a particularly deep thrust into Ichiro, who tightened around him. This pushed Ichiro over the edge, and with a full-body tremor, he came. Panting heavily, Amon pulled out of Ichiro and disposed of the condom. Ichiro watched him, staring at the cum, his cum, that dripped down Amon’s chest. </p><p>Amon pulled him in again, and they kissed, tongues feeling the now familiar terrain of the other man’s mouth. Then, Ichiro accidentally kicked the switch for the shower, and they were both drenched in cold water. Taking the opportunity to clean off, they drained the tub and showered together. They fell asleep facing each other, bodies pressed as close to the other as possible.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The End</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>For the next few days, Ichiro and Amon enjoyed each other’s company. They went through old CCG files they had at their respective apartments, trying to find the crucial piece of information that would help them undermine the CCG and convince the general public that ghouls and humans could live in harmony. Unrest was already stirring, what with Eto revealing that she was a ghoul under her author persona, Sen Takutski. </p><p> </p><p>The coffee shop that had been Goat headquarters had been attacked by Mutsuki and now lay in smoking ruins. Despite this, Touka had still sent out wedding invitations. With a jolt of recognition, Ichiro realized that the wedding was today. Shifting, Ichiro looked to the man beside him. Papers covered Amon’s lap as evidence of his research. Amon’s eyes were closed, and his breathing steady. Ichiro woke him up by placing a soft kiss on his lips and gently shaking his shoulder. Amon’s eyes fluttered open, and he looked down at Ichiro with amusement. </p><p> </p><p>“We’re going to be late,” Ichiro said as he stood, helping Amon organize the papers he was reading before offering him a hand. Amon took it and pulled Ichiro close. His tongue slipped into Ichiro’s mouth as they kissed, hands roaming around the other’s body. Breathlessly, Ichiro broke away. </p><p> </p><p>“We’re going to be late!” Ichiro said, before turning playfully and making his way into their bedroom. Two crisp and clean suits were laid out on their bed. They got dressed and then put cloaks over the suits so that they could look less inconspicuous. Cloaks were better for hiding in. Making their way out of Amon’s apartment, they hurried through the darkness to where the wedding was being held. </p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro watched the ceremony conclude, joy filling his heart. He was glad Touka and Kaneki had found their way together and that they both seemed happy. Touka had smiled more that night that Ichiro had seen her smile since he met her. Kaneki was overjoyed, talking to anyone who would listen about how beautiful, kind, intelligent, and caring Touka was and how excited he was that they had come to the wedding. Next to him at the banquet table, Amon leaned closer to Ichiro and whispered in his ear. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“That could be us.” Ichiro snorted, swirling the wine glass of blood he held before responding. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“We can’t get married until the CCG is destroyed or reworked. Only then can we finally live in peace.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>“If you say so…” Amon pouted. </p><p>
  
</p><p>An explosion rocked the ground, shaking the table and spilling drinks. Dread coursed through Ichiro as he heard the unmistakable sound of Muitsuki’s voice screaming Kaneki’s name. Something about Mutsuki had changed and they sounded sadistic. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Jesus,” Ichiro murmured, now standing next to Amon, breaking the shocked silence between them. Screams rang out as the CCG started to attack, and Ichiro lost sight of Touka and Kaneki in the chaos. Amon took his hand and they ran together, trying to protect whoever needed it. The battle raged on until finally, Ichiro spotted Kaneki, locked in a fight with Juuzou. The young investigator had changed since Ichiro had last seen him, and he had forgone his quinque scythe for what looked like the completed version of Ararata armor. Electricity crackled around Juuzou as he and Kaneki clashed. A woman’s scream rang out, and Ichiro turned to see Touka, impaled with one of Mutskui’s knives. Ichiro met Amon’s eyes, and they came to a silent agreement. Quickly, Ichiro kissed Amon before turning and running towards Kaneki and Juuzou. The two seemed equally matched, and Ichiro knew that on his own he would not have been able to withstand Juuzou’s vicious attacks. However, he hoped to aid Kaneki and possibly give him the upper hand. Ichiro also wanted to make sure that Kaneki wouldn’t kill Juuzou. The young investigator had suffered throughout his short life and deserved a chance to work with Goat. Ichiro had hoped that he’d be able to convince Juuzou, or at least stall him long enough for Juuzou to be captured. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Juuzou’s gaze hardened as it landed on Ichiro, though his eyes weren’t filled with hate. He seemed confused, and it cost him as Kaneki struck him across the chest, knocking Juuzou to the ground. Kaneki pounced on Juuzou, kagune raised, ready to piece through Juuzou’s heart. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“Stop!” Ichiro yelled. Kaneki blinked, and taking the opportunity, Juuzou attempted to electrocute him. Kaneki noticed his scheme and slapped Juuzou so hard his eyes rolled up in his head. The young investigator was unconscious, not dead, and Ichiro could still hear his heart pumping blood through his veins if he concentrated. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“I’ll take care of him,” Ichiro said, out of breath. “Go help Touka.” </p><p>
  
</p><p>Kaneki nodded and ran in the direction Touka had been.  Suddenly, he was stopped when masked figures dropped from above. Ichiro had no idea where they’d come from, but their presence made him uneasy. </p><p>
  
</p><p>All at once, they attacked Kaneki. The mist obscured their fight as it shifted across the battlefield, but the smell of blood filled the air. With a sinking feeling, Ichiro realized it was Kaneki’s. Desperately searching the surrounding area for something, anything, he could do to help, Ichiro’s gaze alighted upon Juuzou’s squad members, wounded but alive. Making a split-second decision, Ichiro scooped up Juuzou in his arms, grunting at the extra weight of the Arata armor, and raced towards the sad-looking group. He arrived quickly, out of breath, and wordlessly placed Juuzou’s unconscious body on the ground in front of Hanbee. Hanbee glared at Ichiro, hate clear on his face as he looked at what he thought was Juuzou’s corpse. </p><p>
  
</p><p>“He’s… alive,” Ichiro said between gulps of air, “get him… out of here.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>Not waiting for a response, Ichiro turned and ran back towards Kaneki, hoping he wasn’t too late. He was. As soon as Ichiro neared where Kaneki had been, he was knocked back by the sheer force of Kaneki’s kagune. In horror, Ichiro watched as it grew, sprouting from the ground and spreading quickly. This was the largest kagune Ichiro had ever seen, and he couldn’t imagine the amount of energy it took for Kaneki to sustain it. Ichiro glimpsed Amon on the other side of the pillar-like kagune, staring at it in horror as he supported Touka. Mutsuki was nowhere to be found, having fled. </p><p>
  
</p><p>A sinking sensation filled Ichiro as he realized that the kagune hadn’t stopped expanding and instead tunneled underground, spreading to who knows where. The battle hadn’t been started when the CCG attacked, it had only just begun. </p><p>
  
</p><p>
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</p><p>Hide’s crazy plan had worked. The CCG had agreed to work with Tokyo’s ghouls to rescue Kaneki and end the threat of what they now called Dragon. Ichiro shivered as he watched humans who had just been near to those monsters released by Dragon transformed into ghouls. They writhed in agony as everything they knew about themselves changed.</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro forced himself to look away and forget the expressions on their faces. Nauseous, he turned and nearly ran into Amon. The taller man was out of breath, and it took him a few seconds before he could speak. </p><p> </p><p>“They’re back. Something… something bad happened to Yonebaiyashi.” Amon grabbed Ichiro’s hand and pulled him away from the mass of bodies. When they reached the room, Amon knocked and slid open the door when a muffled voice announced: </p><p> </p><p>“Come in!”</p><p> </p><p>Yonebaiyashi lay motionless, the only indicator that she was alive being the steady <em>beep-beep </em>of the heart monitor. Ichiro’s own heart slowed, trying to match the monitor's sounds. An odd maroon kakuja covered Yonebaiyashi’s eyes and nose, leaving only her small mouth visible. </p><p> </p><p>The group clustered around her hospital bed looked sad and helpless as they stared down at the small girl. Ichiro spotted Kaneki, and relife filled him. <em> Finally, this nightmare will be over</em>, he thought as he and Amon joined the small group. </p><p> </p><p>“How is she?” Ichiro asked, directing his question at the doctor tending to Yonebaiyashi. The woman sighed and reviewed her clipboard. </p><p> </p><p>“She’ll live. Unfortunately, she is now full ghoul. Her RC levels are stabilizing and she should be awake by tomorrow.” </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro sighed in relief. </p><p> </p><p>“Thank you,” he said, trying to convey his joy that Yonebaiyashi was alive and that she would continue to be so. </p><p> </p><p>The doctor inclined her head. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro and the others began to discuss their current situation. Dread coursed through Ichiro’s body when he learned there was another core to Dragon, and that it had to be destroyed. Of course, Kaneki volunteered, and he and Ayato began to discuss their plan. A rumble followed by the sound of an explosion paused their conversation. Then, the telltale sound of marching filtered into the room. </p><p> </p><p>“Damn it,” Ichiro muttered. “Who are they?” </p><p> </p><p>No one had an answer to this, and soon they were ordered by Marude over the speakers to go out and face the oncoming attack. </p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>Ichiro panted, sweat rolling off of his forehead and trailing into his eyes. His fancy new white coat had just been signed by the mysterious Owl’s purple energy blast. He desperately searched for Amon in the fray, but couldn’t spot him. Noticing his panicked, furtive glances, Akira yelled to Ichiro as she dodged a blast, neatly rolling out of the way. </p><p> </p><p>“Marude ordered him to find whatever is controlling this,” she shouted, pausing to slash at the masked ghoul descending upon her. “He went that way!” She finished and pointed. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro turned and dashed away in that direction, much to Marude’s displeasure. Annoyed and distracted by the man’s voice in his earpiece, Ichiro tore the contraption off and stuffed it in his pocket, not waiting to see what punishment awaited him for disobeying orders. He wasn’t even technically part of the CCG anymore, so what could Marude do to him? </p><p> </p><p>Sniffing the air, Ichiro searched for the familiar smell of Amon. He found it and quickly began to follow it. A few mysterious masked ghouls were unlucky enough to be in Ichiro's way, and he killed them without a second thought, intent on finding and helping Amon. The grotesque sound of ripping flesh, followed by the overwhelming smell of blood motivated Ichiro, and he ran faster. When he reached where he thought the source of the disturbance had been, Ichiro began to climb the building, jumping from windows and finding handholds on the rough brick. In his frantic climbing, Ichiro barely noticed that his fingers had been torn open by the sharp edges of the stone. He reached the top of the room just in time to see Amon kill Donato Porpora. </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro froze when Amon began to speak, unsure if he should go to support him or let him say what he needed. Ichiro waited. A rattling laugh escaped Donato’s destroyed throat, and finally, the light left his eyes. Amon collapsed to his knees, tears rolling down his face. Closing the distance between them, Ichiro sat next to him, letting the taller man lean on him. Amon cried onto his shoulder, blood and salty tears soaking into Ichiro’s coat. </p><p> </p><p>“I- I killed him. He was the closest thing to a father that I had and I killed him. What does that make me?” Amon asked. Ichiro pulled him closer, hugging him before answering.</p><p> </p><p>You did what was right. He would have killed you and everything would have been lost. Come on, let’s get out of here.” </p><p> </p><p>Ichiro took Amon’s hand and helped him stand. Amon surprised Ichiro by pulling him in close and kissing him softly. </p><p> </p><p>“Whatever happens, if we live or die, I want you to know that I love you Ichiro. I always will.” Overcome by emotion, it took Ichiro seconds to respond, before he was finally able to say: </p><p> </p><p>“I love you too, Koutarou Amon.” </p><p> </p><p>Amon grinned shyly down at Ichiro before kissing him again. They left the building, joining the rest of the CCG to wait and see if Kaneki would succeed in his mission. </p><p> </p><p>He did. It took the CCG and ghouls days to clean up the city as best as they could and find all the dead or injured. The Japanese government signed an ‘equal rights’ law, making ghouls official citizens and providing synthetic meat for free to any ghoul who wanted it. The CCG was reformed and began to work with ghouls to keep the peace. Not all ghouls liked or agreed with the government's idea and continued to hunt humans. The new CCG tracked them down and imprisoned them in the repaired Cochlea. Slowly, Tokyo began to return to normal, with a few notable improvements. Ichiro and Amon helped whenever they could, and trained new recruits to the CCG, teaching them about ghoul biology and fighting tactics. </p><p> </p><p>They spent the rest of their time together, content to just be. </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>i hope you all liked this! i've got to admit, I've been pretty unmotivated with this story, but I'm glad it's over. i was unsure of how to end it properly, but here we are! thank you everyone for all your support!! </p><p>i will be taking a break from ichiro to work on a fic with Tatara that I'm writing (three chapters are already posted), and I've been thinking about possibly writing a banana fish fic. i also will be brainstorming and possibly starting a sort of prequel with ichiro and ayato! please send me any suggestions/requests you have for tokyo ghoul fics and i might write some!</p>
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